Who was Neolithic man? * Sixtyexpress

Orkney Isles are known for their Ancient sites. I said sites not sights silly billy. Today is your big opportunity to discover what sort of person Neolithic Og,Sog, Ig and Ze( false names to protect their identity’s).

As you can see our friends lived in a small village. There was lots of yummy fish, seafood and deer to catch and fertile ground to grow crops. They made tools and decorations that they were proud to display .

They had shelves for their clothes and special ornaments above their beds. Men slept in a big bed on the right and women in a smaller bed on the left. It is believed that they were extra cosy with warm skins. There was food storage and a central hearth. It is believed that there was a toilet area but I didn’t find it so couldn’t use it….soooo can’t vouch for this.

So now you have seen how or friend lived. What did they do in their spare time. Well they probably had special rituals and celebrations. To make these really exciting they created meaningful spaces. Two of these are the Ring of Brodgar and Stones of Stenness Circle.

Og and Ig were strong men but these are serious sized rocks. They would have weighed tons and remember there was not much wood available. They think these rocks were quarried using stone tools from the main rock mass. Then they were moved kilometres to there final spot. Seaweed was probably used to make the stone slippery so they could move it. An amazing feat of engineering.

If you studied the site map, I know you did so you can see the Skaill house. This house belonged to the landowner or Laird who identified the archeological site on his farm. Built in 1620, the house is as its owners lived in the 1950’s. It is very much a home unlike most houses of this type.

I think our Neolithic friends may have been confused by the size of this house. They may have been more comfortable at the Brough of Birsay, a Pict and Viking settlement. Sorry I wasn’t.My excuses was the rain, slippery path …., I just got out of the bus ,took some distance photos. Major fail in keeping you informed .

Maeshowe would have suited them perfectly. This is a burial place and possibly also used for certain rituals as the door closed from the inside.

It would have taken many generations to build it as it is made from massive pieces of rock. These are placed so they overlap, gradually closing over the top to form a roof. This was then covered with clay and rock so that it was watertight. It still is.it was designed to be lit at the winter solstice. The entrance was a tunnel so you were bent down. Norse found their way in and left rune graffiti. This included their names in two cases.