Summary Record

Date 24 January 2012

Event ID 883050

Category Descriptive Accounts

Type Summary Record

Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/event/883050

In 1991, coastal erosion revealed a Viking burial at Scar, Sanday. The burial was of a type known as a boat grave and contained three individuals; an elderly female, an adult male and a child of around ten.

Excavation of the site showed that it comprised a seven metre-long boat, which had been deliberately placed in a pit that was aligned E-W. Large stones filled the eastern end of the boat, creating a chamber at the western end into which the bodies had been placed.

The grave goods found indicate that this was an important burial. Several high-status objects were discovered, including a decorated whalebone plaque that survived virtually intact. Dating evidence suggests the burial would have taken place at the end of the 9th century AD.

Information from RCAHMS (HDS) 24 January 2012

Graham-Campbell, J and Batey, C E 1998

Owen, O and Dalland, M 1999