Knowe of Burrian Chambered Cairn — Southern Extension

Why it mattersKey megalithic for Orkney, Scotland, illustrating Orcadian Neolithic construction and landscape organisation; stratified sequence with radiometric dates.

Theories are interpretations, not findings. The seal above tells you how much scholarly weight the place carries.

Built

c. 3000 BCE

Period

Late Neolithic (3200-2500 BCE)

Culture

Orcadian Neolithic

Purpose

Collective burial and territorial marker for agro-pastoral community

Excavation

Partially excavated

1. c. 3000 BCE

   Initial construction of Knowe of Burrian Chambered Cairn — Southern Extension main structure

2. c. 1195 CE

   Secondary refurbishment / reuse phase documented stratigraphically at Knowe of Burrian Chambered Cairn — Southern Extension

3. 19th–20th century

   Modern excavation and survey (campaigns at Knowe of Burrian Chambered Cairn — Southern Extension) with geophysical prospection

• Knowe of Burrian Chambered Cairn — Southern Extension — Main Megalithic Feature

  rock art

  Primary rock art at Knowe of Burrian Chambered Cairn — Southern Extension — platform mound with stratified deposits

  59.0618° N · 3.1089° W

• Knowe of Burrian Chambered Cairn — Southern Extension — Secondary Enclosure

  hydraulic

  Ancillary hydraulic at Knowe of Burrian Chambered Cairn — Southern Extension — enclosure wall with stratified deposits

  59.0602° N · 3.1095° W

• Knowe of Burrian Chambered Cairn — Southern Extension — Outlier Rock Art Panel

  necropolis

  Outlier necropolis panel linked to Knowe of Burrian Chambered Cairn — Southern Extension ceremonial landscape

  59.0628° N · 3.1093° W