My Travel and History Blog, Focussing mostly on Roman and Mediaeval Times
25 Aug 2013
Ring of Brodgar, The Neolithic Landscape
The views of the Ring of Brodgar, framed by hills, with lochs on two sides, is very pretty, but it is not the original landsacpe.
Sure, the hills were there already, but the area of what today is Loch Stenness instead was a marshy bog with pools of water. Makes one wonder how those Neolithic people managed to set the stones up on such tricky ground, but I suppose the spot they chose for the ring may have been less marshy; it is a bit higher even today. That still leaves the problem of transporting heavy boulders across mossy ground, but the Neolithic people must have solved it somehow (timber causeways and such would not leave any traces).Read more »
The Ring of Brodgar
Sure, the hills were there already, but the area of what today is Loch Stenness instead was a marshy bog with pools of water. Makes one wonder how those Neolithic people managed to set the stones up on such tricky ground, but I suppose the spot they chose for the ring may have been less marshy; it is a bit higher even today. That still leaves the problem of transporting heavy boulders across mossy ground, but the Neolithic people must have solved it somehow (timber causeways and such would not leave any traces).
16 Aug 2013
Neolithic Orkney - The Ring of Brodgar
Orkney is rich in Neolithic sites, and the area between the Ring of Brodgar, the Standing Stones of Stenness, and Maes Howe in particular so. On the landbridge separating Loch Stenness and Loch Harray, the Ness of Brodgar, a Neolithic settlement is being excavated, with cool new finds popping up almost daily. Those guys and gals must love playing in the mud right now. *grin*
Partial view of the Ring of Brodgar
The Ring of Brodgar is the most visible and iconic of those Neolithic sites. It makes for splendid photo motives, too; I got too many to cover by one post. So I'll give you some general information about the ring here, with another post about the role of the site in Neolithic Orkney to follow. Read more »
Orkney is rich in Neolithic sites, and the area between the Ring of Brodgar, the Standing Stones of Stenness, and Maes Howe in particular so. On the landbridge separating Loch Stenness and Loch Harray, the Ness of Brodgar, a Neolithic settlement is being excavated, with cool new finds popping up almost daily. Those guys and gals must love playing in the mud right now. *grin*
The Ring of Brodgar is the most visible and iconic of those Neolithic sites. It makes for splendid photo motives, too; I got too many to cover by one post. So I'll give you some general information about the ring here, with another post about the role of the site in Neolithic Orkney to follow. Read more »
