Cille Pheadair is one of more than 20 Viking Age and Late Norse settlements discovered on the island of South Uist in the Outer Hebrides (Western Isles), off the west coast of Scotland. Its unusually well-preserved stratigraphic sequence of nine phases of occupation, including five longhouses and many smaller buildings, provides a remarkable insight into daily life on a Norse farmstead during two centuries of near-continuous occupation c. AD 1000 –1200. Although the excavation at Cille Pheadair was a rescue project undertaken before the site was destroyed by coastal erosion, it provided an opportunity to address important research questions about the domestic use of space, agricultural economy, and relationships with the wider world beyond the Outer Hebrides. Careful and ground-breaking analysis of preserved house floors provided profound insights into the changing use of space within a Norse longhouse and its surrounding outbuildings. The rich assemblage of pottery, ironwork, gold and silver reveals that the inhabitants of Cille Pheadair had long-distance connections across the Viking world. A battery of scientific studies, including faunal and floral analyses, isotopic and lipid residue analyses, and soil chemistry, have revealed much about the social and economic dimensions of life on a Norse farm. Detailed survey and excavation in South Uist, reveals a remarkable picture of Norse-period settlement across this island which was part of the insular Viking world between Ireland and Norway, becoming part of the Kingdom of Man and later the Kingdom of the Isles. Cille Pheadair’s status as an ordinary, if wealthy, farmstead can be contrasted with the much larger and longer-lived high-status settlement at Bornais to the north. The two sites together provide a fascinating insight into similarities and differences within the settlement hierarchy of the time that makes a significant contribution to our understanding of the Viking world.

• Cover
• Title
• Copyright
• Contents
• List of Figures
• List of Tables
• List of Contributors
• Acknowledgements
• 1. Cille Pheadair and the Norse period in South Uist: M. Parker Pearson
  • Previous research in Cille Pheadair township
  • The Viking Age and the Late Norse period in South Uist
  • The Viking Age and the Late Norse period in the Western Isles
  • The project’s research design
  • The excavation 1996–1998
  • This report
• 2. The Pictish burial cairn, cal AD 640–780: M. Parker Pearson
  • Introduction
  • The cairn
  • The burial
  • The small mammals in the burial J. Williams
  • The human skeleton A. Chamberlain
  • Radiocarbon and stable isotope analysis P. Marshall
  • Combined lead, strontium and oxygen isotope analysis J. Montgomery, J. Evans and C. Chenery
  • Comparisons and discussion
• 3. Initial construction and occupation (phase 1), starting cal AD 945–1020: M. Parker Pearson and M. Brennand
  • Ploughing
  • The possible post-built structure
  • The sand bank and its stone revetment walls
  • The pits within the embanked enclosure
  • Soil micromorphology of windblown sand with ploughmarks (621) C. Ellis
  • Artefacts and other remains from the pits M. Parker Pearson with J. Bond, C. Paterson, J. Mulville and C. Ingrem
  • Overview M. Parker Pearson
• 4. The earliest deposits above the pits (phase 2), starting cal AD 945–1020: M. Parker Pearson and M. Brennand
  • Chronology and stratigraphy of the phase 2 features M. Parker Pearson
  • Contexts within the sandbank enclosure
  • Contexts in the northern part of the sandbank enclosure and outside it
  • Outside the entranceway and east of the sandbank enclosure
  • The soil micromorphology of the levelling layer (600) C. Ellis
  • Artefacts and other remains from phase 2 M. Parker Pearson with J. Bond, C. Paterson, J. Mulville and C. Ingrem
  • Overview M. Parker Pearson
• 5. The first stone longhouse: House 700 (phase 3), constructed cal AD 1030–1095: M. Parker Pearson and M. Brennand
  • The house and its deposits
  • The spatial patterning of debris within the house floor M. Parker Pearson, H. Smith, H. Manley and P. Marshall
  • Deposition outside the enclosure and the formation of the midden
  • The associated middens
  • Artefacts and other remains from the house and its associated deposits M. Parker Pearson with J. Bond, C. Paterson, J. Mulville and C. Ingrem
  • Overview M. Parker Pearson
• 6. The second stone longhouse: House 500 (phase 4), constructed cal AD 1060–1110: M. Parker Pearson and M. Brennand
  • The house and its deposits
  • The entrance and forecourt
  • The associated middens
  • The spatial patterning of debris within the house floor M. Parker Pearson, H. Smith, H. Manley and P. Marshall
  • Soil micromorphology of the house floor, floor of the north room, wall construction and midden C. Ellis
  • Artefacts and other remains from the house and its associated deposits M. Parker Pearson with J. Bond, C. Paterson, E.J. Pieksma, J. Mulville, C. Ingrem and P. Austin
  • Small mammal bones from the floor of House 500 J. Williams
  • Overview M. Parker Pearson
• 7. Modification of House 500 (phase 5), rebuilt cal AD 1070–1125: M. Parker Pearson and M. Brennand
  • The house and its deposits
  • The outhouse (Structure 353) and the stack-base (421)
  • The middens
  • The spatial patterning of debris within hearth layer 503 M. Parker Pearson, H. Smith, H. Manley and P. Marshall
  • Artefacts and other remains from the longhouse, the outhouse and their associated deposits M. Parker Pearson with J. Bond, C. Paterson, J. Mulville, C. Ingrem and P. Austin
  • Overview M. Parker Pearson
• 8. The sheds (phase 6), constructed cal AD 1100–1155: M. Parker Pearson and M. Brennand
  • A break in the sequence of inhabitation
  • Pre-construction layers
  • Sheds 406 and 400, and their replacement Shed 365
  • Construction of the sheds
  • The working floor or stack-base (350)
  • Abandonment deposits
  • The spatial patterning of debris within the shed floors M. Parker Pearson, H. Smith, H. Manley and P. Marshall
  • Soil micromorphology of the shed floor C. Ellis
  • Artefacts and other remains from the sheds and associated deposits M. Parker Pearson with J. Bond, C. Paterson, J. Mulville, C. Ingrem and P. Austin
  • Overview M. Parker Pearson
• 9. The east–west longhouse: House 312 (phase 7), constructed cal AD 1105–1160: M. Parker Pearson and M. Brennand
  • The house and its deposits
  • Outhouse 006 and its deposits
  • The spatial patterning of debris within the house and outhouse floors M. Parker Pearson, H. Smith, H. Manley and P. Marshall
  • Soil micromorphology of the house floor C. Ellis
  • The midden deposits
  • Artefacts and other remains from the house and its associated deposits M. Parker Pearson with J. Bond, C. Paterson, J. Mulville, C. Ingrem and P. Austin
  • Overview M. Parker Pearson
• 10. The last longhouse: House 007 (phase 8), constructed cal AD 1140–1205: M. Parker Pearson and M. Brennand
  • The house and its deposits
  • Outhouse 006 (stages III/IV and V) and its deposits
  • The spatial patterning of debris within the house and outhouse floors M. Parker Pearson, H. Smith, H. Manley and P. Marshall
  • Soil micromorphology of the passageway into the house C. Ellis
  • Artefacts and other remains from the house and associated deposits M. Parker Pearson with J. Bond, C. Paterson, J. Mulville, C. Ingrem and P. Austin
  • Overview M. Parker Pearson
• 11. Reuse and abandonment of the ruins of House 007 (phase 9), ending cal AD 1160–1245: M. Parker Pearson and M. Brennand
  • Final use of the site
  • Hut 084/026
  • Hut 075/031
  • The spatial patterning of debris within the hut floors M. Parker Pearson, H. Smith, H. Manley and P. Marshall
  • Artefacts and other remains from the huts and associated deposits M. Parker Pearson with J. Bond, C. Paterson, J. Mulville, C. Ingrem and P. Austin
  • The final use and abandonment of the site M. Parker Pearson
• 12. The ceramics
  • The local pottery J. Bond
  • The imported pottery E.J. Pieksma
  • The other ceramic artefacts D. Dungworth and M. Parker Pearson
• 13. The combs, ornaments, weights and coins: C. Paterson with contributions by M. Parker Pearson and E. Besly
• 14. The bone and antler tools: C. Paterson
• 15. The iron knives, tools and weapons: M. Parker Pearson
• 16. The stone artefacts: M. Parker Pearson with contributions by G.D. Gaunt, C. Paterson, M. Edmonds and K. Martin
• 17. Industrial activity
  • Ironworking debris D. Dungworth
  • Fuel ash slag D. Dungworth, M. Parker Pearson and H. Smith
• 18. The faunal remains – mammals
  • The large mammals J. Mulville and A. Powell
  • The small mammals J. Williams
  • The coprolites J. Williams and C. Ingrem
  • Bone collagen stable isotope analysis J.R. Jones and J. Mulville
• 19. The faunal remains – birds, fish and marine molluscs
  • The birds J. Best and J. Cartledge†
  • The fish C. Ingrem
  • The marine mollusca H. Smith and M. Parker Pearson
• 20. The human remains: A. Chamberlain
• 21. The carbonized plant remains and wood charcoal
  • The carbonized plant remains H. Smith and S. Colledge
  • The wood charcoal macro-remains P. Austin
• 22. Absorbed and visible organic residues: L. Cramp and R.P. Evershed
• 23. Soil micromorphology: C. Ellis
• 24. Radiocarbon dating: P. Marshall, M. Parker Pearson and G. Cook
• 25. The Cille Pheadair farmstead in its context
  • Politics and power in the Western Isles c. AD 1000–1300: the documentary evidence B.E. Crawford
  • The Norse-period farmstead at Cille Pheadair M. Parker Pearson
• Bibliography