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Until 1850, Skara Brae lay under the sand dunes behind the bay. Rough seas and high winds in that year stripped away the grass, revealing several houses, while in 1924 the remainder was uncovered as a result of similar weather. Although there were several phases of occupation, all that can be seen today is the last phase. The settlement of eight dwellings, linked together by a series of low alleyways, was fully excavated between 1928 and 1930 by Vere Gordon Childe.
Skara Brae's inhabitants numbered no more than 50 to 100 at any one time. They were apparently makers and users of Grooved Ware. The houses were not sunk into the ground but were built into mounds of pre-existing rubbish known as " middens". Although the midden provided the houses with a small degree of stability, its most important purpose was to act as a layer of insulation against Orkney's harsh winter climate. On average, the houses measure 40 square metres in size with a large square room containing a large hearth which would have been used for heating and cooking.
The dwellings contain a number of stone-built pieces of furniture, including cupboards, dressers, seats, and box beds. A sophisticated drainage system was even incorporated into the village's design, one that may have included a primitive form of toiletA toilet is a plumbing fixture devised for the disposal of bodily wastes, including urine, feces, menses and vomit. The word toilet can be used to refer to the fixture itself or the room containing it. Etymology The word toilet came to be used in English.
The ancient inhabitants of Orkney built structures known as chambered cairnA chambered cairn is a burial monument, usually constructed during the Neolithic, consisting of a cairn of stones inside which a sizeable (usually stone) chamber was constructured. Some chambered cairns are also passage-graves. Typically, the chamber is ls. These pyramid-like structures were built as communal burial places, revealing burials according to tribal status. The history of chambered cairns in Orkney spans thousands of years, during which time a variety of designs developed. Though these designs vary, they all fall into one of two main types: the Orkney-Cromarty and the Maes HoweMaes Howe is a Neolithic chambered cairn and passage grave situated on Mainland Orkney (off northern Scotland). The monuments around Maes Howe, including Skara Brae, were designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1999. It gives its name to the Maes Howe type of chambered cairn.
A comparable -- if smaller -- site exists at Rinyo on Rousay IslandRousay (from Old Norse Hrolfs-oy meaning Rolf's Island) is a small but hilly island about 3 km (2 mi) off the north side of Orkney's Mainland, which has been nicknamed "the Egypt of the north" due to its tremendous archaeological diversity and importance.. Unusually, no Maes Howe type tombs have been found on Rousay and although there are a large number of Orkney-Cromarty chambered cairns, these were built by Unstan WareUnstan ware is the name used by archaeologists for a type of finely made and decorated Neolithic pottery from the 4th millennium BC. Typical are elegant, round based bowls with a band of grooved patterning below the rim. It is named after Unstan chambered people.
The site at Skara Brae is believed to have been occupied from about 3100 BC, for about six hundred years. Around 2500 BC, after the climate changed, turning much colder and wet, the settlement was abandoned by its inhabitants.
The Bard's TaleBard's Tale may refer to: The Bard's Tale game released by Interplay Productions/ Electronic Arts in 1985. The Bard's Tale game released by InXile Entertainment in 2004. and Ultima computer role-playing games also feature cities named "Skara Brae".
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