10 Interesting Skara Brae Facts

Monday, August 3rd 2015. | History


Skara Brae Facts present the interesting information about the stone built Neolithic settlement.   There were 8 clustered houses located inside Skara Brae. If you want to visit this settlement, you can go to Bay of Skaill. The location is on the west coast of Orkney archipelago in Scotland. It is considered as the largest island. Get more facts about Skara Brae below:

Skara Brae Facts 1: the occupation

The experts estimated that in 3180 BCE till 2500 BCE, Skara Brae was inhabited by the people.

Skara Brae Facts 2: UNESCO World Heritage Site

Skara Brae takes the title as the Scottish Pompeii because it has wonderful preservation. Moreover, it is also called as the Heart of Neolithic Orkney. This amazing site is included in UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Skara Brae Facts

Skara Brae Fact

Skara Brae Facts 3: the discovery

The people who live around the area never think that there are several small houses without roofs located in the village.  When a hard storm hit Scotland in the winter season in 1850, it formed Skerrabra or the large irregular knoll in the Bay of Skaill. When the storms had gone, the villagers found out the houses.

Skara Brae Facts 4: the excavation

The amateur excavation was conducted by the local villager named William Watt. There were four houses uncovered. In 1868, the work to uncover the other houses was neglected.

Skara Brae Houses

Skara Brae Houses

Skara Brae Facts 5: another storm

One of the houses discovered in the Skara Brae was damaged after it was swept by a storm in 1924. Therefore, it has to be secured. In the mid 1927, Professor Vere Gordon Childe under University of Edinburgh went to Skara Brae to do the job. Get facts about Scarborough Castle here.

Skara Brae Facts 6: the Neolithic life

After the discovery of the houses, people can find out the lifestyle during the Neolithic era. The people who lived in Skara Brae were users and markers of grooved ware.  The earth sheltering was used to create the houses.

Skara Brae Pic

Skara Brae Pic

Skara Brae Facts 7: the middens

The middens were used by the Neolithic people to create the house. The middens are the prehistoric domestic waste which gave great insulation on the house during the winter season.  However, it only has low stability.

Skara Brae Facts 8: the dimension of the house

Skara Brae had the dimension around 430 square feet or 40 square meters.

Skara Brae Ruin

Skara Brae Ruin

Skara Brae Facts 9: the large square room

The house had a large square room. The main function is for cooking and heating for it featured the stone hearth. Get facts about Red Fort here.

Skara Brae Facts 10: the number of people

The experts believed that Skara Brae was inhabited by around 50 people at that time by seeing the number of houses.

Skara Brae

Skara Brae

What do you think on facts about Skara Brae?


tags: ,