Skara Brae and the Ring of Brogdar!

 

Up this morning about 6, and our first breakfast at “home.”  We bought crackers, cheeses, salami, ham and pepperoni yesterday at Tesco, which is what we had for breakfast.  (Both of us have always preferred a “continental” style breakfast over a cooked breakfast!).  Today’s was really good!  Robert had found some wonderful garlic biscuits (crackers) that were really excellent, and we had an enjoyable meal.  Cleaned up and found that basically, all the laundry I had done on Friday night was dry!  Yeah!  Between the heated towel rack and the drying cupboard, we now have almost completely clean clothes!  

 

We left for our 9:30 – 10 am reservation at Skara Brae about 9 am, and had an easy drive to the other side of the island.  The day was rather overcast and a bit misty – but we’re thinking that as we’re on an island, and lots of weather comes in from the north, that this may be the norm in the mornings, with some (my new favorite word!) brightening in the afternoon!  At any rate, our windscreen (shield in the U.S.) definitely needs a good going over; maybe tomorrow before we go out!

 

Arrived just on 9:30 at Skara Brae.  Picked up our tickets and sat through a very short but interesting film about the site.  From there, walked through a very interesting exhibit which included some of the actual artifacts that were discovered there, as well as an interesting exhibition on what is actually known vs. what can be surmised about the ancient population.  From there, outside into an actual rebuilt model of one of the Skara Braehouses, and from there, a lovely walk along the coast to the actual village of Skara Brae itself.  Wow.  It’s incredible!

 

So … Skara Brae!  This is a neolithic village at Skaill Bay, that is over 5000 years old.  It was first rediscovered in 1850 when a great storm blew away the sand that had lain over it, and from the start it was recognized as something special.  The village comprised a group of dwellings set back from the sea and surrounded by farmland.  The houses were built literally into the hillside from a double skin of stone, with midden (decomposed refuse) packed into the cavity to provide stability and insulation.  The doorways open to a central passageway that was roofed over with stone slabs.  The passage served to allow movement about the settlement without going outside.  

 

Each house comprised a single room, about 6m by 6m, divided into separate zones.  At the center lay the hearth.  On the wall opposite the door stood a stone dresser.  To either side there were stone beds and other furnishings.  Beside the dresser there were small, watertight troughs that may have been used to keep food or bait fresh.  The assumption was that animal skins were used for bedding and for clothing, and that vegetation was used for padding on the stone “beds” that were built either into or along the walls.  It was really fascinating to see how people really lived so many thousands of years ago!  We’ve never seen anything like it!

 

There were only a few other people there when we visited, and it was amazing walking through the village and looking down into the ruins.  Also pretty chilly, although the man who opened the Visitor Center was talking about how “warm” it was (???) and that he was in shirt sleeves!  All I can say is that I wasn’t!!

 

From Skara Brae, we walked to Skaill House, a lovely mansion that has been owned by the same family since it was first built in the 1620’s.  In fact, a member of the family, the 7^th Laird, was the one who rediscovered Skara Brae in 1850, and assisted at the first excavations!  The house is now open for touring, and makes a very interesting visit after the ancient history of Skara Brae.

 

From there, we started back towards town, stopping at several locations, most notably the Ring of Brodgar.  This is a huge and classic henge site, with a ditch surrounding its platform.  Twenty-seven of 60 possible standing stones survive, set around the circumference.  The henge is 104m in diameter and the ditch is cut into bedrock, over 3m deep and 10m wide.  There are two opposed entrances, with causeways across the ditch.  It is really quite impressive, and the stones, while considerably weathered, are indeed beautiful.  It doesn’t have the height or bulk of Stonehenge, but the location, set up on a hill, is quite remarkable.  It also actually started to brighten up at this point as well!  There was even some sunshine and blue sky around! There is also something called the Comet Stone, a single monolith, sited just down the hill from the Ring.  Its purpose is unknown, but it could point to the fact that it is part of a greater complex of sites along the peninsula, as there were many burials focused around the site during the Neolithic and into the Bronze Age.  

 

Passing by the Ring of Brogdar

Inside the replica hut

The village of Skara Brae

Looking into a house; hearth in the middle

Built in bed on the right

Very close to the beach!

Skaill House

Lovely dining room

Ring of Brogdar

Comet Stone

We wanted to stop at the Stones of Stenness, but unfortunately, by that time, there were no parking places left in the small parking area.  So, that will have to wait for another day!  Back into town, with a stop at Tesco to pick up a few more supplies, and we’re in for the day!  We had doctored-up pasta with red sauce for dinner, and a nice bottle of Chilean Tempranillo to go with it!  Curled up in front of the telly for another episode of Midsomer Murders, which we’re finding very entertaining – albeit suspenseful!  More tomorrow, when we go looking for more stones, cairns and possibly birds!

 

m

xxx