Wideford Hill Chambered Cairn Mainland Orkney
Wideford Cairn
Neolithic (c.3500 BCE)·Orcadian Neolithic·🇬🇧 Orkney, Mainland, near Kirkwall, United Kingdom
Unukorno · CC BY 4.0
About
About Wideford Hill Chambered Cairn Mainland Orkney
Hilltop cairn excavated 1849 and later by G. Petrie, with three concentric wall faces and intact chamber below moorland peat. Recorded context — Period: Neolithic (c.3500 BCE); Culture: Orcadian Neolithic; Field status: excavated; Materials: flagstone; Condition: preserved.
Why it mattersKey Orcadian Neolithic megalithic with stratified sequence and regional typology.
Open questions
Mysteries & theories
Mysteries
- 01Astronomical alignment
- 02Chronology and phasing
Theories
- 01Observatory
- 02Elite residence
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. 3500 BCE
- Period
- Neolithic (c.3500 BCE)
- Culture
- Orcadian Neolithic
- Purpose
- Triple-compartment chambered cairn — upland burial with views over Scapa Flow
- Rediscovered
- Modern excavation 1944
- Excavation
- Excavated
c. 3500 BCE
Initial construction / first occupation at Wideford Hill Chambered Cairn Mainland Orkney
1970 excavation
Modern rediscovery and scientific excavation of Wideford Hill Chambered Cairn Mainland Orkney
c. 1200 BCE major extension
Major expansion / refurbishment at Wideford Hill Chambered Cairn Mainland Orkney
On the ground
Structures & features
58.9850° N · 2.9580° W · 110 m · 4 mapped features
- Wideford Hill Chambered Cairn Mainland Orkney — Principal Standing Stonestanding stonestanding stone at Wideford Hill Chambered Cairn Mainland Orkney — primary structure58.9859° N · 2.9566° W
- Wideford Hill Chambered Cairn Mainland Orkney — Northern Chamberchamberchamber at Wideford Hill Chambered Cairn Mainland Orkney — subsidiary complex58.9860° N · 2.9582° W
- Wideford Hill Chambered Cairn Mainland Orkney — Southern Cairncairncairn at Wideford Hill Chambered Cairn Mainland Orkney — primary structure58.9834° N · 2.9580° W
- Wideford Hill Chambered Cairn Mainland Orkney — Standing_Stone Annex 4standing stonestanding stone at Wideford Hill Chambered Cairn Mainland Orkney — primary structure58.9836° N · 2.9561° W
Gallery