Field Visit

Date 16 June 1934

Event ID 1166326

Category Recording

Type Field Visit

Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/event/1166326

RCAHMS Inventory: Orkney and Shetland

About 50 yds NNW of the farm-house of Quanterness a conspicuous green mound marks the site of a chambered structure which was explored at some date shortly before 1805 (Barry, History of Orkney, 98-101). The mound is of considerable size, measuring about 90 ft. in diameter, and about 10 ft 6 in, in height. Its original form appears to have been that of a truncated cone, 128 ft. in circumference at the base, and 14 ft. high. On the E side of the mound there seems to have been a long passage leading into the interior, but this cannot now be identified with certainty by examination of the surface. Further, only at one place are there any remains of the masonry of the chamber apparent, and these are very fragmentary. A ground plan of the structure, drawn at the date when it was originally investigated, is reproduced here. From this it will be seen that the passage led into a central chamber of oblong form orientated with its major axis due N. and S. and measuring 21 ft 6 in long, 6 ft 6 in broad and 11 ft 6 in high. From this main chamber passages led at floor level into six smaller compartments or cells. These were arranged on a symmetrical plan, two being placed on each of the long sides and one at each end. They measured respectively 10 ft. 7 in. by 4 ft. 1 in. by 7 ft. 6 in.; 9 ft. 5 in. by 4 ft. 5 in. by 7 ft; 10 ft. by 4 ft. 1 in. by 8 ft. 6 in.; 7 ft. 2 in. by 3 ft. 9 in. by 8 ft. 7 in.; 9 ft. 9 in. by 4 ft. 4 in. by 8 ft. 1 in ; and 8 ft. 11 in. by 3 ft. 6 in. by 6 ft. 8 in. All of the chambers were built on the" beehive" principle. The floors were of dark, earthy clay, plentifully charged with the much-broken unburnt bones of birds and domestic animals. Some human bones occurred in the deposit and a complete human skeleton was found in one of the compartments.

RCAHMS 1946, visited 16 June 1934

OS 6” map (1903) ‘Chambered Mound’