Ness of Brodgar

Ness of Brodgar

United Kingdom · Orkney, Scotland

Temple / ritual siteIntermittent excavation
Approximate period3,500 BCE — 2,400 BCENeolithic See on the map ↓

In brief

Excavations between the Ring of Brodgar and the Stones of Stenness revealed large Neolithic buildings and extensive use of decorated stone. The long-running excavation program ended in 2024; following new geophysical results, renewed excavation was arranged for 2026.

What was found?

  • 1Monumental stone structures

    These are large, carefully constructed buildings with thick walls. They demonstrate the scale of construction undertaken through collective labor in Neolithic Orkney.

  • 2Stone slabs with butterfly motifs

    These slabs are decorated with incised motifs consisting of opposing triangles. According to researchers, some may have been placed in connection with the blocking of entrances.

  • 3Painted wall stones

    These are stones with pigments in shades of red, brown and yellow applied to their surfaces. They show that the interiors of the buildings were more colorful than the bare stone visible today.

  • 4Stone roofing slabs

    Thin stone slabs that collapsed into the buildings are interpreted as the remains of roofing. They provide direct evidence for the roofs of Neolithic buildings.

  • 5Grooved pottery

    Decorated vessels known as Grooved Ware make up most of the assemblage. Vessel forms and decoration allow changes over time and similarities with other settlements to be traced.

What does it point to?

The size of the buildings and the labor devoted to decoration indicate that the site held a special place in community life. According to researchers, it was a center for gatherings, feasts and probably ceremonies; its function may have changed over time.

What did it teach us?

  1. It showed that large stone buildings in Neolithic Orkney had colorful walls.
  2. It documented the use of thin stone slabs as roofing.
  3. It enabled relationships between settlements to be investigated through architecture, decoration and pottery.

Images

Ness of Brodgar 19 - 6.7.16
S Marshall · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Latest news / selected archive

2024: A large stone slab with engraved decoration in the eastern annex of Structure 12 was lifted, and its butterfly-like motifs were documented.

Record

Culture
Orkney Neolithic communities
First modern dig
2003
Team / historical
Nick Card; Ness of Brodgar Project
Coordinates
58.9972°, -3.2156°

Sources

  1. nessofbrodgar.co.uk
  2. nessofbrodgar.co.uk
  3. trove.scot
  4. en.wikipedia.org
  5. Ness of Brodgar Projesi — Yapı Sekiz
  6. Ness of Brodgar Projesi — Çanak çömlek
  7. UHI Arkeoloji Enstitüsü — Archaeology Orkney

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