Westray, Langskaill

HY44SW 9 4383 4287.

The farmer at Langskaill reports that whilst a water main was being laid about two years ago at HY 4383 4287, a hole was revealed about 4 to 5ft. deep through which a drystone passage covered with lintel stones could be seen. It was immediately covered over and left intact. There is now no surface trace of it.

Visited by OS (RL) 1 July 1970.

HY 438 428 The farmer at Langskaill accidentally collapsed a capstone covering a large void with his tractor. Subsequent investigation revealed that the stone lay over an entrance to a well-preserved souterrain. This structure was first found in the late 1960s during the course of trenching to lay a water main. Since then, the site has been covered over and its location was uncertain. In order to assess the remains, the surface surrounding the hole was cleared and the uppermost archaeological levels were investigated. The truncated remains of a possible rectangular building were found, together with sherds of steatite vessels, thought to be of Norse date. These lay some 1m above the roof level of the souterrain chamber.

Preliminary investigation of the souterrain indicates that the access hole was not the original entrance but may have been constructed during a period of reuse. The original entrance passage lay to the SE. The chamber is approximately oval and measures 5 x 3m. The roof is supported by a series of roughly coursed columns and stands approximately 1m above the present floor level. No excavation was carried out within the interior due to health and safety considerations, although it is thought that floor deposits are present. A new capstone was set over the hole to temporarily safeguard the structure.

Sponsor: Orkney Islands Council.

H Moore, G Wilson and M Carruthers 2002

HY 438 428 A souterrain was uncovered in 2002 when a deep void appeared beneath the weight of a tractor. A rapid assessment soon after confirmed the presence of the souterrain and also found traces of a probable Norse period structure (DES 2002, 89).

In 2003, geophysical survey and open area excavation was conducted on an area surrounding the souterrain. Excavation uncovered the remains of part of a longhouse, indicated by geophysical survey to be in the region of 25m long. The interior of this building contained wall benches and a drain system. Finds include fragments of steatite vessels, pottery, bone combs and iron objects. Fragmentary remains which are tentatively identified as part of an Iron Age settlement, possibly contemporary with the souterrain, were found beneath the longhouse.

Sponsors: HS, Orkney Islands Council, Orkney Archaeology Trust.

H Moore and G Wilson 2003

Iron Age settlement; Norse settlement HY 438 428 A further season of excavation was carried out in late 2004. The excavation of the souterrain was completed and it was found to form a subterranean annexe to a curvilinear building. Part of the roof of the souterrain was found to have collapsed in antiquity, sealing early floor deposits in situ. Very few finds were recovered which could point to a purpose for the structure; however, stone tools were found in the area of the entrance, and whalebone objects were recovered from the clay capping which sealed the roof.

The curvilinear building was only partially excavated; finds recovered include steatite-tempered pottery. These were the earliest deposits encountered within the excavation area, and were overlain by structures and associated deposits which are provisionally dated to the mid-1st millennium AD on the basis of artefactual evidence. A full programme of radiocarbon dating will be carried out as part of the post-excavation work.

During a subsequent phase of Norse settlement, represented by a longhouse and external yards, the remains of the souterrain were re-used and substantial quantities of midden, containing fish bone, animal bone and steatite vessel sherds, were deposited within it. Other finds of interest from within the longhouse include composite bone combs and an iron axehead.

Full report lodged with Orkney SMR.

Sponsors: HS, Orkney Islands Council.

H Moore and G Wilson 2005