Midhowe Cairn

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The Midhowe Cairn
The hall under which the cairn near the sea lies
Outer wall with the herringbone pattern that has slipped here

The approximately 23.0 m long Midhowe Cairn is the second largest Stalled Cairn in the British Isles . It belongs to the Orkney-Cromarty type (OC), which falls under the category of passage tombs , and is not far from the Broch of Midhowe , near the coast in the southwest of the Orkney island of Rousay . The reason for the exposed location is that the building materials are almost ready for installation due to coastal erosion .

The stall-like boxes
Midhowe Cairn

description

Today the facility is protected by a hall. Until the 1930s it was a grass hill about 31 m long and 9.5 m wide. From 1932 onwards, the landowner uncovered the remains of a Neolithic burial chamber in a series of excavations dating from around 3500 BC. BC. An elongated chamber was discovered under the stones of the collapsed roof, which was divided into twelve unequally wide boxes, plus a head niche, by upright stone slabs placed on both sides. Each box contained a stone bench. Most of the burials had been on their plates. The remains of 25 people - 17 adults, six teenagers and two children under the age of four - were found. The body parts were leaning against the wall. Those at the southern end of the row of boxes were on their left, those at the northern end on their right. Most of the skeletal remains lay between the slabs on the stone benches. Only four were found under the benches and three were on the floor outside the structures. Since no human remains were found in the first four boxes near the entrance, it is believed that the bodies were stored here until decarnation before the bones were collected and deposited in the inner part. The outer wall of the cairn is preserved up to a height of 2.5 m and has a peculiarity that has not been observed anywhere else in this form, but occurs in a similar form on Rousay at two other structures. The bricks of the facade are laid in the middle area, clearly as a herringbone pattern with a continuous straight separating layer.

Reuse

After the tomb went out of use, two other dead were buried in the rubble. The man was in the southwest corner of Box No. four, the woman was in the northwest corner. The woman's body was also buried in a rough box-like structure made of flat stones. Both had been buried on their right side with their heads facing south in a crouched position.

Additional finds

In the fill layer of the cairn , the excavators found the bones of cattle and sheep, the remains of deer (antlers), as well as fish bones and the shells of limpets. As with other Orkney Cairns, the finds indicate either ritual festivals around the place or they were grave goods. The remaining artifacts include five hammer stones, three unworked stones and a pestle.

The Blackhammer , Knowe of Lairo , Knowe of Ramsay , Knowe of Yarso and Taversoe Tuick facilities are close by .

literature

  • JG Callander; W G. Grant: A long stalled chambered cairn or mausoleum (Rousay type) near Midhowe Rousay, Orkney. With a description of the skeletal remains by Profess or Alec Lowe ', Proc Soc Antiq Scot, Vol. 68, 1933-4. Pp. 320-350
  • Anna Ritchie, Graham Ritchie : Scotland. To Oxford Archaeological Guide. Oxford University Press, Oxford et al. 1998, ISBN 0-19-288002-0 , pp. 199-201.

Web links

Commons : Midhowe Cairn  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Coordinates: 59 ° 9 '23.2 "  N , 3 ° 5' 56.7"  W.