Round circle in ground

Iferguson

Wee recently ploughed a field and in the corner of it there is a roundish mark on the ground about 15m in diameter, the clay inside this circle is black which is different to the clay around it which is brown, and any stones inside this circle are red or orange in color. Stones outside are the normal grey color
Anybody have any idea what could have caused this?

Thanks for your time.

slowburner

Iferguson wrote: »

Wee recently ploughed a field and in the corner of it there is a roundish mark on the ground about 15m in diameter, the clay inside this circle is black which is different to the clay around it which is brown, and any stones inside this circle are red or orange in color. Stones outside are the normal grey color
Anybody have any idea what could have caused this?

Thanks for your time.

Sounds like a perfect description of a fulacht fia or burnt spread. The dimensions are right. The blackened area is the floor of the pit and the red stones are ones that were heated in the fire and put into the water to boil it.
See here for a fuller description:
http://knowthyplace.wordpress.com/2011/02/07/know-thy-monuments-fulacht-fia-or-burnt-mound/

The exact purpose of fulachtaí fiadh is still the subject of much debate.
Cooking, bathing (more of a sauna!) and beer making have all been proposed.

This is a good find and the National Monuments Service would be delighted to hear about this.
Many thanks for sharing it here.