Holm of Papa Westray North Cairn
Holm of Papa Westray North · Papa Westray North chambered cairn
Early Neolithic·Orkney Early Neolithic·🇬🇧 Holm of Papa Westray, Orkney, Scotland, United Kingdom
About
About Holm of Papa Westray North Cairn
Long stalled cairn on uninhabited Holm of Papa Westray, 20 m long mound covering 12 m stalled chamber with multiple compartments and side cell, plus external facades. Built c.3400 BCE, one of Orkney's earliest. Excavated 1982–83 by Ritchie, yielding human and animal bone and Unstan Ware. Adjacent to South cairn 200 m south, forming paired tomb cemetery on small holm of 48 ha, suggesting sacred islet status in Neolithic.
Open questions
Mysteries & theories
Mysteries
- 01Why paired tombs on tiny holm — islet cemetery?
Theories
- 01Holm as island of the dead, separation from living on Papay
Theories are interpretations, not findings. The seal above tells you how much scholarly weight the place carries.
History
How it came to be
- Built
- c. 3400 BCE
- Period
- Early Neolithic
- Culture
- Orkney Early Neolithic
- Purpose
- Stalled burial cairn on sacred islet
- Abandoned
- Late Neolithic
- Rediscovered
- Excavated 1982–83 (Anna Ritchie)
- Excavation
- Excavated
c. 3400 BCE
Initial construction
c. 1208 CE
Abandonment
On the ground
Structures & features
59.3530° N · 2.8700° W · 15 m · 1 mapped feature
South companion cairn
cairnSmaller round cairn 200 m south on same holm
59.3510° N · 2.8710° W
Gallery