In pre-historic days, the Neolithic men buried their dead in long barrows or mounds, while the later Celts buried in round barrows. Long barrows contain no metal weapons; round barrows have bronze weapons and ornaments as well as stone. In the bronze age, gold ornaments are also found. The sepulchral cairn, however, is commoner in Peebles and Selkirk than the barrow. Tombs of the ancient Celts have been occasionally discovered in almost every parish in Peehlesshire; but most frequently in the west, especially in the Lyne valley.

The ancient Britons have also left numerous hill-forts, their houses or defences, which existed before, during, or after the Roman occupation. No fewer than 83 of these hill-forts have been surveyed in Peeblesshire. They are most numerous in the west and north-west of the county, rare in Tweedsmuir, in the Quair and in the Leithen valleys, unknown on the slopes of the Pentlands and in the valley between these hills and the Southern Uplands.

In Selkirk they are not to be found in the middle valleys of Ettrick and Yarrow; and only nine in all exist in the eastern part of Selkirk, the most important being the Rink. The forts are usually situated, at an elevation ranging from 1000 to 1400 feet, on terminal spurs, as East Cademuir; on isolated hills, as Macbeth’s Castle on the slopes of valleys, as Harehope; or in the valley itself, as Stirkfield, Broughton. Two-thirds of them have been constructed entirely of stone, the rest of earth, or of earth and stone. Their general form is curvilinear, modified to suit the outline of the surface. But it is not possible to say whether the walls were built, or simply piled up. In the fort at Dreva, however, traces of building have been seen. Some forts, as Upper Cademuir, have treble rings; some, as Cardrona, double; and some, as East Cademuir, single rings. The circumference varies, roughly from 150 yards at East Cademuir to 600 yards at Upper Cademuir. Two stone forts, West Cademuir and Dreva, are defended by groups of stones at a lower level than the camp, forming a sort of chevaux defrise, a feature found nowhere else in Scotland.

None of these forts equals in interest that on Torwoodlee hill a few miles from Galashiels, 300 feet above Gala Water and situated within the area of a British camp on Crossleehill. It belongs to the type of fort known as a broch. Brochs are dry-built circular castles. They are characteristic of the Celtic area, outside of which they have never been found. They belong to post-Roman times; their relics are Celtic, Roman, and post-Roman. The remains of the Torwoodlee broch measure 75 feet, and the enclosed court 40 feet in diameter, the height of the walls being about three feet. The entrance passage is on the east side and must have been closed by a door. At the main entrance was a guard room within the thickness of the wall, and on the south-west side there are the remains of a staircase which would lead to the upper galleries of the tower, sometimes five or six in number, the floor of one forming the roof of the other. The broch of Torwoodlee is thus larger than that of Mousa. The relics of the brochs show that their occupants hunted in the forests; kept flocks and herds; cultivated grain; fished rivers and seas; and were acquainted with the arts of weaving and pottery, metal, wood, and stone work. The relics of Torwoodlee broch consist mainly of pottery, glass, enamels, and iron implements.