Skara Brae and Skaill House ticket
Brae is a Scottish term meaning slope or hillside.
Recreated house
Plan of Skara Brae
Along the Bay of Skaill
Carbon dating indicates that occupation of Skara Brae began around 3180 BC and continued for about 600 years. It is not known why the village was eventually abandoned; perhaps, climate change. Excavation revealed 8 dwellings linked together by low-covered passages. The houses were sunk into the ground to provide protection from the weather. They were insulated with household waste and dirt. Archeologists believe 50 to 100 people occupied Skara Brae at one time. The people who built Skara Brae are believed to have primarily been pastoralists, tending sheep, cattle, and pigs. There is evidence that barley was cultivated.
Long before Stonehenge and the Egyptian Pyramids
One of the dwellings
Europe's most complete Neolithic village
~430 square feet per dwelling
Skara Brae was discovered in 1850 after a severe storm. After the storm cleared, villagers noticed the outline of a village consisting of several houses without roofs. After four houses were uncovered (via amateur excavation), work was abandoned in 1868. The site remained undisturbed until 1913 after another storm. After a storm in 1924 swept away one of the houses, the site was secured for proper excavation.
Passageway
The village is located on the shore of the Bay of Skaill.
Skaill House is a 17th-century mansion where William Graham Watt, the 7th Laird of Breckness and owner of the estate, discovered the ancient Neolithic village of Skara Brae. It is the most intact 17th century mansion in Orkney and has been a private home for almost 400 years. Skaill House was open to the public in 1997 after several years of restoration work. I toured it after visiting Skara Brae. Most of the furnishings were modern, as the house was last occupied in 1991.
The discovery of Skara Brae