Heart of Neolithic Orkney facts for kids
| UNESCO World Heritage Site | |
|---|---|
Excavated dwellings at Skara Brae, Europe's most complete Neolithic village.
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| Location | Orkney, United Kingdom |
| Includes | |
| Criteria | Cultural: (i), (ii), (iii), (iv) |
| Inscription | 1999 (23rd Session) |
| Extensions | 2015 |
| Area | 15 ha (37 acres) |
| Buffer zone | 6,258 ha (15,460 acres) |
Heart of Neolithic Orkney refers to a group of Neolithic monuments found on Mainland, one of the islands of Orkney, Scotland. The name was adopted by UNESCO when it proclaimed these sites as a World Heritage Site in 1999.
There are five sites on Mainland:
- Skara Brae – a cluster of ten houses making up Northern Europe’s best-preserved Neolithic village.
- Ring of Brodgar – a stone circle 104 metres in diameter, originally composed of 60 stones set within a circular ditch up to 3 metres deep and 10 metres wide, forming a henge monument. It has been estimated that the structure took 80,000 man-hours to construct.
- Standing stones of Stenness – the four remaining megaliths of a henge, the largest of which is 6 metres (19 ft) high.
- Ness of Brodgar is an archaeological site between the Ring of Brodgar and the Stones of Stenness that has provided evidence of housing, decorated stone slabs, a massive stone wall with foundations, and a large building described as a Neolithic 'cathedral'.
- Maeshowe – a unique chambered cairn and passage grave, aligned so that its central chamber is illuminated on the winter solstice. It was looted by Vikings who left one of the largest collection of runic inscriptions in the world.
Related pages
Images for kids
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Map of the main site
See also
In Spanish: Corazón neolítico de las Orcadas para niños
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Heart of Neolithic Orkney Facts for Kids. Kiddle Encyclopedia.