<< Our Photo Pages >> Barnhouse Settlement - Ancient Village or Settlement in Scotland in Orkney
Submitted by Drewparsons on Thursday, 22 September 2011 Page Views: 17639
Multi-periodSite Name: Barnhouse SettlementCountry: Scotland County: Orkney Type: Ancient Village or Settlement
Nearest Town: Stromness Nearest Village: Birsay
Map Ref: HY30761270 Landranger Map Number: 6
Latitude: 58.995783N Longitude: 3.206768W
Condition:
5 | Perfect |
4 | Almost Perfect |
3 | Reasonable but with some damage |
2 | Ruined but still recognisable as an ancient site |
1 | Pretty much destroyed, possibly visible as crop marks |
0 | No data. |
-1 | Completely destroyed |
5 | Superb |
4 | Good |
3 | Ordinary |
2 | Not Good |
1 | Awful |
0 | No data. |
5 | Can be driven to, probably with disabled access |
4 | Short walk on a footpath |
3 | Requiring a bit more of a walk |
2 | A long walk |
1 | In the middle of nowhere, a nightmare to find |
0 | No data. |
5 | co-ordinates taken by GPS or official recorded co-ordinates |
4 | co-ordinates scaled from a detailed map |
3 | co-ordinates scaled from a bad map |
2 | co-ordinates of the nearest village |
1 | co-ordinates of the nearest town |
0 | no data |
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External Links:
I have visited· I would like to visit
sharipdx AJohn1958 whese001 would like to visit
drolaf visited on 14th Jun 2022 - their rating: Cond: 3 Amb: 4 Access: 3
Catrinm visited on 27th Aug 2019 There is a daily free tour which is worth doing ( thanks Martin !)
Suzipam1 visited on 1st Jan 2019 - their rating: Cond: 4 Amb: 5 Access: 4 My ancestors made this. It is a powerful statement
bishop_pam visited on 18th Apr 2018 - their rating: Cond: 4 Amb: 5 Access: 4
RockHugger visited on 23rd Sep 2016 - their rating: Cond: 5 Amb: 5 Access: 4
SandyG visited on 2nd Jun 2015 - their rating: Cond: 4 Amb: 5 Access: 5 Well worth visiting.
Jansold visited on 3rd Jun 2013 - their rating: Cond: 2 Amb: 3 Access: 4
markj99 visited on 7th Aug 2012 - their rating: Cond: 3 Amb: 4 Barnhouse Settlement is the closest habitation to the Stones of Stenness marking it as an important site. The site is easy to visit from Stenness. It presents reconstructed floorplans of multiple buildings in the settlement making it easier to imagine how the original may have looked.
megalithicmatt visited on 1st Jun 2011 - their rating: Cond: 3 Amb: 3 Access: 4 Rebuilt and made all spick-and-span...
jeffrep visited on 15th Aug 2007 - their rating: Cond: 3 Amb: 5 Access: 4
Richard13 visited on 1st Jul 1999 - their rating: Cond: 3 Amb: 5 Access: 4
43559959 visited on 27th Nov 0201 - their rating: Cond: 3 Amb: 3 Access: 5
Runemage visited - their rating: Cond: 4 Amb: 5 Access: 4 I visited in 2005 so this log’s from memory, it was a superb location. I’ve not seen structures built so close to a loch. Imagine stepping outside first thing in the morning, a few steps and you could have a quick dip and catch your breakfast simultaneously. The Standing Stones of Stenness are only a short walk away and easily visible from Barnhouse, so it leads the imagination to wonder what went on between the two sites. Did the people who lived at Barnhouse build the circle or use it? Present day (2011) excavations at the nearby Ness of Brodgar are unearthing buildings which seem to be constructed in a very similar way to some of the ones at Barnhouse. I don’t know of any other area that has a stone circle with contemporary dwellings so close by. Here we have two within easy walking distance of each other, the Ring of Brodgar with the Ness settlement then cross the causeway which has its own megaliths, the finest being the Watchstone, to find Stenness with the Barnhouse settlement. Maes Howe is also visible from Stenness, I didn’t check from Barnhouse but it’s likely.
All of these sites are so close to each other and I think contemporary, it’s hard not to let the imagination run riot and wonder how the population socialised. Was it harmonious or human nature being what it is, were the Ness and Barnhouse residents in competition with each other. Did the entire population live in these structures or were they only for one section of the community and the others lived in temporary dwellings?
Some of the features in the houses are delineated by different coloured gravels, wooden posts etc. to give a very clear visual of what was where and what it was used for. One has a trapezoidal stone where you couldn’t help but walk over it. I can’t remember what was found under it but think there was one instance of a burial in a doorway, very liminal, threshold and all that, but not so nice for us to think of granny under the doormat!
This area is literally the Neolithic Heart of Orkney, not only does it have so many monuments in such a small area, it has a tantalising link to the people that lived and worked there.
PAB rrmoser AngieLake DrewParsons TimPrevett NickyD Redfun have visited here
Average ratings for this site from all visit loggers: Condition: 3.42 Ambience: 4.33 Access: 4.09
One of the main features discovered so far is known as Structure 8 and seems to be a ceremonial area with access controlled through an apparently symbolic fireplace at the entrance. It is the large circle area and dominates the site. House two is constructed of more solid and better shaped stonework compared to the other houses, similar to that found in some local tombs.
Part of the Barnhouse site has been reconstructed to give its present look, the original walls sometimes below the reconstructed ones to preserve them and also to give an impression of what the settlement would have looked like originally. It is a short walk behing the Stones of Stenness and well worth a visit.
Note: New finds in ‘cathedral’ building reignite question – Stone Age dresser or altar? See latest comment
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