In 1850, a fierce storm hit Bay o’ Skaill on the main island of the Orkney Islands. In doing so, it tore up the grass on a hill, then known as Skerrabra, revealing the ruins of an ancient stone house. Further investigations revealed that the hill and surrounding area were once the site of a long-forgotten farming village. However, with all the important ceremonial sites nearby, there may be more to the story of the inhabitants of Skara Brae than just farming.
Excavation of Skara Brae
Excavation of the village known as Skara Brae began in earnest after 1925 under the direction of Australian archaeologist Vere Gordon Childe (who was in charge of excavating the site in 1927).
An interesting fact about the village of Skara Brae is that it is located near a large ceremonial complex. This may indicate something about the status of the people who lived there. This wonderfully preserved village is a central part of prehistoric Orkney, including a passage tomb and two roundabout structures. One of the hinges is one of the oldest hinged structures in the British Isles.
Skara Brae settlement on the island of Orkney, Scotland. (XtravaganT/Adobe Stock)
Climate change threats
Unfortunately, it appears that Skara Brae is currently under threat from the elements. A recent report found that rising sea levels and heavier rainfall associated with climate change are cause for concern for the archaeological site.
Ewan Hyslop, head of engineering and scientific research at Historic Environment Scotland, said: “The threat here is very real in terms of the existence of the area. Global projections for sea level rise are quite staggering. And it is believed that rising sea levels have the potential to cause major damage to the settlement.
Who lives in Skara Brae?
V. Gorgon Childe initially thought the site was an Iron Age village and dated to around 500 BC, but radiocarbon dating in the early 1970s revealed that it was in fact In fact, it is a late Neolithic site, inhabited sometime between 3200 BC and 2200 BC. . The site has been occupied for about 600 years.
After being abandoned, the settlement was flooded with sand from nearby coastal dunes. There is debate among archaeologists as to whether the site was quickly buried in a storm and therefore quickly abandoned or abandoned for other reasons and then gradually abandoned. sand covered by encroaching dunes.
This area consists of eight stone houses connected by closed paths. Each house has the same layout – a square room with a fireplace in the middle. There is a large bed in the right corner of the room furthest from the entrance and a smaller bed in the left corner of the room furthest from the entrance.
Detail shows a walkway connecting the houses. ( Jule_Berlin / Adobe Stock)
Some archaeologists suggest that men and women had separate sides of the room and that the smaller bed was for the woman or wife. Pots and beads that the women would have stored were found in the smaller bed – possibly supporting this theory. There is also a wardrobe right across from the entrance.
There is also an interesting theory about heat-resistant stones and large vessels found at Skara Brae dating back to 3000 BC. Local archaeologist Merryn Dineley believes the pottery was once used to heat malt, “germinating and heating grain grains to produce alcohol.” By examining the material culture recovered at the site, researchers suggest that the people of Skara Brae may have been farmers and herders.
View inside one of the houses in Skara Brae. ( DorSteffen /Adobe Stock)
Other important local archaeological sites
An ancient low road dating from the same period passes from the village to a nearby mausoleum complex called Maeshowe. Maeshowe is a passage tomb similar to the tombs at Newgrange and Loughcrew and its passage is aligned so that light enters at the winter solstice.
Another important archaeological site located near Skara Brae is the Standing Stones of Stenness, a ceremonial site long associated with magic and the Norse god Odin. The site may also have archaeological astronomical significance.
In addition to the Standing Stones of Stenness, there is also the Ring of Brodgar, a related item. The fortified stones date back to around 3100 BC (while the village of Skara Brae was inhabited) and the site is one of the oldest collared structures in the British Isles.
Steadfast rocks. (Public domain)
The proximity and number of megalithic structures imply that this was a landscape of ceremonial significance. With this information, some investigators, such as Euan MacKie, suggested that the village of Skara Brae was home to a group of astronomer-priests responsible for maintaining sacred sites.
Other scholars reject this idea and say that the material culture of the site shows a fairly typical Neolithic farming village – nothing more. Another possibility may be that this was a residence for pilgrims during their visits to ritual sites – although this has not been suggested by any prominent investigator.
Inside the reconstruction of the Neolithic house of Skara Brae. (Barry Stock /Adobe)
Convenient or meaningful stone?
Another reason why Skara Brae is considered especially important is because it is made primarily of stone. This is striking because most village settlements in the British Isles during the Neolithic period were probably made of wood or other perishable materials.
On the other hand, it is possible that timber trees were not abundant at the time Skara Brae was built. Loughcrew Cairns and Stonehenge were both built in probably wooded areas during the late Neolithic period. Skara Brae, on the other hand, was built near a coastal dune field, where vegetation tends to be scarce.
The lack of wood may have forced people to build the village out of stone. Stone structures are better preserved and, therefore, would be more likely to be found near ceremonial sites than settlements built of wood.
It’s possible that none of these explanations are correct, but the fact remains that Skara Brae is quite unusual in its proximity to a ceremonial site – suggesting that the people who lived there may also have had a unique society .
