Ramberry Cairn

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
BW

The Ramberry Cairn is a terrain formation near Quanterness and contains a Bronze Age stone box with unique finds that was only uncovered in 2005 . Ramberry is northwest of Kirkwall on Mainland , the largest island in the Scottish Orkney .

A structure that was previously only recognizable as badly damaged turned out to be the remains of a cairn during the excavation . Only the lower areas of the masonry are preserved, which was covered by the collapsed masonry of the upper areas. Although the complex is practically destroyed, enough has been preserved to give a rough idea of ​​what it originally looked like. The structure was round, and according to Nick Card of the Orkney Trust, it could be an entirely new type of monument with a ritual character. Due to the lack of ceramics , the - probably Neolithic - complex could not be dated more precisely.

Ramberry Point from the A 960

The south-easterly access to the Cairn, which has a diameter of about five meters, was made through a corridor about 2.5 meters long. The corridor and its orientation are typical of the Cairns on Orkney. They suggest that the structure had a ritual function. The location near the Neolithic settlement "Crossiecrown" makes it probable that the cairn, and later the stone box found nearby (which is probably part of a cemetery), had a function in the village life of the settlement. On the other hand, there was a lack of material to be expected in connection with a use as a grave. No human remains were found. It appears as if the structure was finally deliberately destroyed.

During the Bronze Age (1800-600 v. Chr.), Has been on the site for some unknown reason, a stone monument erected, and Ard (a prehistoric plow type ) in a hillside grave resigned nearby.

Web links

Coordinates: 59 ° 0 '27.6 "  N , 3 ° 0' 16.3"  W.