An Aberdeenshire heritage site has been damaged by fire.
Visitors to Aikey Brae Stone Circle, near Old Deer, discovered the remains of a fire on the grounds this week.
Pictures from the area show burned logs and a large fire mark in the centre of the circle.
Saddened to see new fire damage at Aikey Brae #StoneCircle. We've been working hard to improve the site for visitors, but it continues to suffer from anti-social behaviour. Be advised it is a criminal offence to cause damage to a Scheduled Monument.#HeritageCrime #Aberdeenshire pic.twitter.com/zFYZDWGXDb
— Claire Herbert (@AbshireArch_CH) July 21, 2022
Clair Herbert, an archaeologist in Moray and Grampian, posted a photo of the damage on Twitter.
She said it was disappointing to see the site suffer from acts of anti-social behaviour.
In a post, she wrote: “Saddened to see new fire damage at Aikey Brae Stone Circle.
“We’ve been working hard to improve the site for visitors, but it continues to suffer from anti-social behaviour.
Criminal offence
“Be advised it is a criminal offence to cause damage to a scheduled monument.”
A police spokeswoman said they have been made aware of the incident and are looking into it.
The monument, which stands at the summit of Parkhouse Hill, was constructed by a farming community some 4,000 years ago.
A series of improvements have been made to the site in recent years.
Ms Herbert encouraged anyone with information about the fire to contact police on 101.
In 2019, the stone circle was closed to the public for a month to allow for tree-felling.
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