Welcome to Orkneyjar - a website
dedicated to the preserving, exploring and documenting the ancient history, folklore
and traditions of Orkney - a group of islands lying off the northern tip of Scotland,
where the North Sea and the Atlantic Ocean meet.
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Spotlight A brief selection of topics covered
in Orkneyjar...
Archaeologists focus on birsay mound - A badly deteriorating settlement mound on the south side of Marwick Bay, in Birsay, has been under investigation by a team of archaeologists from Oxford University. (June 25, 2009)
When art meets archaeology - An Orkney College research assistant is set to combine art and archaeology, after receiving a grant to help her complete a study of two of the county’s most intriguing subjects. (May 21, 2009)
Management plan launched - The new management plan for Orkney’s World Heritage Site was launch in Stromness last week. (October 22, 2008)
Westray site is latest to produce Neolithic art - a large piece of decorated stone has been discovered at one of Orkney’s most threatened sites — the Links of Noltland prehistoric settlement, in Westray. (September 18, 2008)
Link: Birsay-Skaill landscape archaeology project: Since 2003, survey and geophysics have been carried out at two locations on the west mainland of Orkney, at Birsay Bay and the Bay of Skaill.
Link: Research Orkney - Do you want to know more about the heritage of Orkney? Research Orkney provides a professional research, advisory and consultancy service dedicated to Orkney's Heritage; be it cultural, historical, archaeological, onomastic, toponymic, topographical or genealogical.
the Orkney Hood
It is rare for organic materials such as leather or cloth to survive through the ages. In normal circumstances they decay rapidly over a relatively short period of time.
But thanks to the preservative qualities of peat, one of Orkney's most unique discoveries looks almost as good today as when it was created over 1,700 years ago.
This artefact, a fringed woollen cloak now known simply as the Orkney Hood, is practically unique among Orkney's many archaeological discoveries.
Lying about a mile to the north-west of the Ring o' Brodgar, are the remains of another henge, known locally as the Ring o' Bookan.
The massive earthwork is made up of an enclosing ditch surrounding an oval raised platform, measuring about 44.5 metres by 38 metres.
The interpretation of the Ring o' Bookan is not clear, although a recurring suggestion in the past was that it housed a Maeshowe-type cairn. Other suggestions are that the enclosed platform had a series of standing stones or a cairn.....
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Orkneyjar is generally updated at least once a month, incorporating new
content with relevant news and information relating to Orkney's rich archaeology,
heritage and history.
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Orkney Pages.
It is rare for organic materials such as leather or cloth to survive through the ages. In normal circumstances they decay rapidly over a relatively short period of time.
Orkney summers are long with almost continual daylight - at present the sun is above the horizon for over 18 hours.
Lying about a mile to the north-west of the Ring o' Brodgar, are the remains of another henge, known locally as the Ring o' Bookan.
To
contact the author about any element of this site, 
