The discovery of ancient culture on the distant Scottish island rewrites the range of the first settlers

Researchers led by the University of Glasgow in Scotland have identified a late Paleolithic site in the extreme north of the island of Skye, marking the most northern evidence of Ahrensburgian culture in Great Britain.

Originally in northern Europe towards the end of the Upper Paleolithic, the Ahrensburgian culture is characterized by distinctive stone tools, including points in Tange and blades, associated with reindeer hunters during the last part of the youngest Dryas and in the beginning of the Holocene.

Ahrensburg artifacts were discovered in South Cuidrach, indicating their presence during the last part of the youngest. Additional evidence on the island includes circular stone alignments probably built at a low level of sea level, which suggests that human activity potentially dating from the primitive Holocene.

The archaeological evidence of a human presence of the late Paleolithic in Scotland has remained rare until the last two decades. The previous hypotheses have concluded that the populations could not have survived the climatic extremes of the youngest Dryas, a sudden cooling period which occurred between around 12,900 and 11,700 years, characterized by a significant expansion of the glaciers through the British islands.

The lithic artefacts discovered on the west coast of the Scottish continent were previously considered isolated and short -lived, insufficient to suggest a sustained colony. Then came the task points and the technology of the blades found on the island of Skye, which questions the past hypotheses more.

The island of Skye is right next to the west coast of Scotland, separated from the continent by narrow straits, including the Narrows of Kylerhea, a crossing point which could have facilitated the prehistoric movement between the island and the continent during the periods of the lower sea. The rugged ground of Skye, the mountainous landscapes and the freezing coastal lines provide a critical context to assess a newly discovered settlement site that no one expected to find.

In the study, “at the bottom of everything: a likely presence of Ahrensbourg in the extreme north of the island of Skye, in Scotland”, published in the Journal of Quaternary ScienceThe researchers conducted a study in the field to assess climatic, environmental and sea level contexts surrounding the newly discovered Tardive Paleolithic site in South Cuidrach on the island of Skye.

Field work has occurred in two main locations. South Cuidrach in the north of Skye and Scason in the center of Skye. South cuidrach excavations covered a 30 m² Zone, where researchers documented a lithic dispersion including tangled points, blades and chisels technology, indicating the cultural characteristics of Ahrensburgians. And at Scurity, a series of ~ 20 circular intertidal stone alignments measuring 3 to 5 meters in diameter has been identified, suggesting a potential anthropogenic activity dating from the primitive Holocene.

The researchers used systematic test bites to establish artefact distribution models and a stratigraphic context in South Cuidrach. Air drones surveys have provided elevation data and orthomosaic cartography, facilitating the documentation of the site’s morphology and the spatial arrangement.

Dating to the radiocarbon of associated mesolithic deposits established a time frame, although no direct date has been obtained for the artifacts of Ahrensbourg.

South cuidrach excavations have revealed a lithic assembly comprising 196 artefacts, in particular points to tange, blades, scissors (chisels) and scrapers. Most of the lithic material has been made from Mudstone baked in the oven locally, indicating access to a coherent source of raw materials.

Several fragments of tanguel points have characteristics associated with the culture of Ahrensbourg, suggesting a late presence of the Upper Paleolithic in the region. Fragments of blade and additional chisels, although they are not diagnosed with Ahrensburg, align with broader typologies of the Upper Paleolithic identified through northern Europe.

At Scurity, the researchers identified up to twenty circular stones alignments in the intertidal area. Measuring between 3 and 5 meters in diameter, each alignment consists of rocks anchored in marine sediments. Visible only during extreme tides, these characteristics lack diagnostic artefacts or direct radiocarbon dates.

The altitude statements and the Bathymmetric analysis place the alignments in a fork of 1.83 to 4.14 meters below the average level of the current sea, suggesting construction during a lower sea level period.

Comparative analysis of similar stone characteristics in Norway provides a potential delay in early Holocene (post-Dryas). No final cultural affiliation is associated with alignments, although there are few other candidates.

The intertidal stone structures of Scresh raise intriguing questions about colony models and perhaps the size at the start of the Holocene. If these are associated with a colony, there may be more, further, from the moment of the Glacial maximum, now hidden under the waves along the coastal landscapes of Skye.

Although the objective was unknown, they could have been used as fish traps or tide hunting structures, potentially linking them to similar structures found in Scandinavia at the same time and in other regions of Scotland in subsequent eras.

The evidence of South Cuidrach and Scason question the hypotheses on human presence in the west of Scotland during young Dryas.

The identification of Ahrensburgian artifacts on Skye suggests that a population may have adapted to extreme conditions. A people who come from the continent of northwest of Europe, crossed Doggerland in Great Britain and finally felt at home at the end of everything.

© 2025 Science X Network