The Intriguing Orkney Islands - A Look Back at Neolithic Times

ORKNEY, or the Orkney Islands is an archipelago in the Northern Isles of Scotland, situated off the north coast of the island of Great Britain.
Orkney has about 70 islands, of which 20 are inhabited. The largest island, the Mainland, is 202 square miles, making it the 6th largest Scottish Island.
The islands have been inhabited for at least 8,500 years, originally occupied by Mesolithic and Neolithic tribes and later by the Picts.
Orkney was colonized and later annexed by the Kingdom of Norway in 875 and settled by the Norsemen. In 1472, the Parliament of Scotland absorbed the Earldom of Orkney into the Kingdom of Scotland, following failure to pay a dowry promised to James III of Scotland by the family of his bride, Margaret of Denmark.
The climate is relatively mild and the soils are extremely fertile. Most of the land is farmed, and agriculture is the most important sector of the economy.
The significant wind and marine energy resources are of growing importance. The amount of electricity that Orkney generates annually from renewable energy sources exceeds its demand.
Orkney contains some of the oldest and best-preserved Neolithic sites in Europe including Skara Brae, the most significant and well known Neolithic site. Other Neolithic sites include the Standing Stones of Stenness, the Maeshowe passage grave, the Ring of Brodgar and other standing stones. Many of the Neolithic settlements were abandoned around 2500 BC, possibly due to changes in the climate.
STANDING STONES OF STENNESS - The Standing Stones of Stenness is a Neolithic monument that may be the oldest henge site in the British Isles. There were originally twelve stones, with some standing up to 20 feet high, focused on a large hearth in the centre. Although only four stones remain standing today.
The monument was dated to around 3100 - 2900 BC by radiocarbon analysis of bones found in the ditch surrounding the monument. No longer visible, the ditch would have been at least 13 feet wide and 7 feet deep, and was cut into bedrock. The stones were arranged in an oval shape, about 30m in diameter, set within this enclosure.
MAESHOWE CHAMBERED CAIRN - Maeshowe is the finest chambered tomb in north west Europe and is more than 5,000 years old. Viking crusaders broke into the cairn in the 12th century and carved graffiti runes on the walls of the main chamber. The monumental is simply the finest Neolithic building in NW Europe and is a masterpiece of Neolithic design and stonework construction, not least for its use of massive individual stones.
The central chamber is quite small, only 16 feet across, but everything else is monumental. Forming most of each wall of the 32 feet-long passage is a single, gigantic sandstone slab, weighing up to three tonnes. At each corner of the central chamber is a magnificent upright standing stone. And off the central chamber are three side cells, the floors, back walls and ceiling of which are single stone slabs.
It seems that after several hundred years of use as a burial tomb, Maeshowe was closed up for good. At least 3,000 years passed before it again attracted attention by the Vikings.
THE STENNESS WATCH STONE - stands outside the Stones of Stennes, next to the modern bridge leading to the Ring of Brodgar. Very little is known about the stone, including when it was erected.
RING OF BRODGAR AND STONE CIRCLE date from the late Neolithic period, with a ditch and causeway.
THE ITALIAN CHAPEL - The Italian Chapel is a shrine built by Italian prisoners of war during WWII, using a Quonset hut and salvaged scraps of metal and wood. The interior is beautifully painted and contains lovely ironwork and trompe l'oeil artwork.
Most of the prisoners were Roman Catholic, and they wanted a place to practice their religion. They persuaded the camp commander, to allow them to build a chapel on Lambs Holm. They were given a pair of Nissen huts linked end to end, on the condition that any work on the chapel was carried out after normal working hours on the Churchll Barriers project.
THE CHURCHILL BARRIERS - Five hundred and fifty Italian prisoners of war were interned on Orkney during World War II, where they were forced to help build the Churchill Barriers, a series of 4 causeways linking Orkney Mainland to the islands of South Ronaldsay, Burray, Lambs Holm, and Glimps Holm. A number of derelict ships were sank in order to help create the barriers.
The barriers were created to block eastern access to the Allied fleet anchorage at Scapa Flow, following the sinking of the HMS Royal Oak in 1939. They now serve to carry the A961 road connecting Kirkwall to Burwick.