Lucy Ankers, a first year archaeology student at the University of Glasgow, seems destined for a promising career in the discipline if her first stroke of luck is anything to go by.

Lucy was taking part on her first ever archaeological dig in Glencoe last month when she made a startling discovery.  Buried beneath the fireplace of a relatively modest house in the valley, she discovered a unique collection of coins.  There are 36 in total, of varying date, but none later than 1688 and contained in a small earthenware pot with a smooth, round pebble serving as its lid.  This has led to speculation they may have been put there for safe keeping, immediately before or even during the famous massacre of 13 February 1692.

The Glencoe Macdonalds, under their chief, known as ‘MacIain,’ had been staunch supporters of the Jacobite attempt of 1689.  As the MacIain clan also had a reputation for cattle rustling among other misdeeds, it was decided to make an example of them in an attempt to bring other recalcitrant Jacobites to heel.  This led, three years later, to a Government force led by Robert Campbell of Glenlyon putting them to the sword during the night, resulting in the deaths of 38 of the clan, including MacIain and his wife.

The purpose of the excavation, led by Glasgow PhD student Edward Stewart, is to discover more of how the landscape was utilised by those living in the glen in the days before the Highland Clearances, when it was home to a significant population engaged mainly in farming. 

The house where the coins were discovered is much grander than an ordinary clansman’s cottage.  It contains fine examples of silver, glassware and ceramics, and from what little of the building survives, there is evidence of some rather grand architectural features, notably the fireplace where the coins were uncovered.  It is believed to be MacIain’s ‘summerhouse,’ which, although not his main residence, served him as a hunting lodge and banqueting hall during the season.  The coins discovered date from as early as 1580 and come from various European countries.  MacIain is known to have travelled widely in his youth, including to Rome and Paris.

Derek Alexander, of The National Trust for Scotland, which cares for the Glencoe National Nature Reserve, said: “The work undertaken by Eddie and the team from the University of Glasgow in Gleann Leac-na-muidhe (Glencoe,) and the range of artefacts recovered, in particular the discovery of the coin hoard, will make a lasting and significant contribution to our understanding of the history and archaology of Glencoe.  This exciting discovery, from another part of the dramatic landscape, adds to the work previously undertaken at the townships of Achtriachtan and Achnacon.  Gradually a fuller story is being pieced together, not just about the time of the infamous massacre, but also of everyday life in the glen before and after 1692.”