Castle Holm

Heritage listing

Date Added 15/12/1953 Last Date Amended 24/02/2012 Type Secular: castle Local Authority Shetland Islands Parish Tingwall NGR HU 39510 47544 Coordinates 439510, 1147544 — The monument comprises the remains of a small and potentially very early stone castle sited on an islet in the Loch of Strom, together with the remains of the stone causeway that connect it to the shore. Researchers suggest the castle may date to as early as the 12th century. The main castle building is a rectangular tower measuring 6.5m E-W by 5.6m transversely, with walls between 1m and 1.4m thick. Most of the walls now stand less than 1m above ground level, but at the NW corner of the tower, the W wall stands about 2.5m tall. The walls are constructed of rubble blocks built with shell-lime mortar. The foundations of other buildings have been identified further east and other traces of masonry suggest that the island was once completely enclosed by a stone wall. The causeway is about 50m long and, although partially submerged, is visible as a narrow line of boulders. The island lies off the W shore of the Loch of Stom, a tidal sea loch, close to its S end, and stands barely above sea level. The monument was first scheduled in 1953, but the documentation does not meet modern standards: the present rescheduling rectifies this. The area to be scheduled is irregular on plan, to include the remains described above and an area around them within which evidence relating to the monument's construction, use and abandonment may survive, as shown in red on the accompanying map.

From Historic Environment Scotland under OGL v3.