Perceton
village in Ayrshire, now an eastern suburb of Irvine
Perceton is a medieval settlement and old country estate in North Ayrshire, Scotland, near the town of Irvine. The ruined church in Perceton is one of the oldest buildings in the Irvine district. The earliest legible gravestone dates from 1698, though older stone coffins will certainly still rest deep within the small hillock on which the chapel and graveyard sit.
History and Archaeology
Perceton House has been demolished and rebuilt several times over the centuries. The present house dates from the late 18th century. Archaeological excavations have uncovered evidence of the long lost medieval manor house which was protected by a moat and the Annick Water. The site is now covered by the modern housing estate known as The Grange. The Cunninghamhead and Annick Lodge Estates are nearby.
An excavation undertaken by Headland Archaeology encountered the foundation trench for a defensive wooden palisade enclosing postholes of a substantial timber building. Access to the compound was through an elaborate entrance, possibly with two gateways, shown below..
“Perceton” enters the record as village in Ayrshire, now an eastern suburb of Irvine. Crown Archives preserves that source wording while asking what Perceton, village and Ayrshire can confirm, complicate or overturn.
Why this record matters
“Perceton” is worth following because a concise public description often conceals a longer documentary argument. Here, Perceton, village and Ayrshire provides the most credible route into that argument.
Place names and jurisdictional language are key evidence: both can reveal earlier catalogue descriptions and overlooked record series. The source revision retrieved here is dated Apr 11, 2025. The linked authority identifier is Q7167049. Authority coordinates are 55.631, -4.620. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1698.
A single description cannot reconcile every naming convention, rebuilding phase or administrative transfer associated with a place. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.
- Historic place names
- Jurisdictional context
- Routes into maps and plans
Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Perceton”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Perceton primary sources, Perceton archive and Perceton research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Perceton”?
- What physical evidence or contemporary plan supports the description?
- Which earlier names or jurisdictions may reveal additional records?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Perceton” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.