A speculative digital reconstruction of Tor Alvie hillfort near Aviemore, Scottish Highlands. The site was identified as a hillfort in 2010-11 (Historic Environment Record: MHG55341). Although the fort has never been excavated, the line of its rampart walls can broadly be determined by a stony bank that encloses an area of roughly 85m x 30m, bearing immediate similarities in size and shape to Craig Phadrig hillfort near Inverness. However, unlike Craig Phadrig, there is no evidence that Torr Alvie was vitrified. It is difficult to know how thick the ramparts were, whether there were timber palisades, and how many entrances the fort had, so imagination plays a large part in this visualisation. This image was rendered from a digital 3D model by using high-resolution digital terrain data from Ordnance Survey to create the backdrop of the Cairngorm Mountains. The image was created by reconstruction artist Bob Marshall with advice from Eve Boyle and Adam Welfare of Historic Environment Scotland and Professor Gordon Noble of the University of Aberdeen.

Commissioned Work (November, 2020). Client: badenochstorylands.com / Cairngorms National Park Authority

Software / Tools

Blender 3D, Cycles Render Engine, Photoshop