From Stirling Castle to the Ness of Brodgar…
Neil Oliver chooses five fascinating places to visit in Britain
Click here to read the full article from BBC History Extra.
To listen to the podcast, click here.… Read more
The Ness of Brodgar complex
Discovered in 2003, the Ness of Brodgar site has been under excavation since 2004, revealing a massive complex of monumental Neolithic buildings dating from the centuries around 3000BC.
Without parallel in Atlantic Europe, the Ness of Brodgar’s three hectares are filled with huge stone structures containing spectacular finds.
These have made the Ness one of the most important archaeological excavations in the world today, changing our understanding of the culture and beliefs of Neolithic Orkney and shining a new light on the prehistory of northern Europe.
The project is mainly funded through the generosity of the public through our two supporting charities, the Ness of Brodgar Trust and the American Friends.
The Summer Wind – Ness excavation 2013
The 2018 excavation season was blessed with nearly two months of uninterrupted sunshine and fair weather.
How easy it is to forget how bad conditions can be on site –… Read more
Ross at the Ness of Brodgar…
Among the 160 diggers working at the Ness this summer was Ross Drummond, an MSc student studying archaeology at the University of the Highlands and Islands.
Ross’s Ness experience was one… Read more
Trench J in 3D
An updated model of Trench J – containing Structure Five and a section of the “Great Wall of Brodgar” – created by supervisor Paul at the end of this season’s… Read more
From the Art Hut
This year the Art Hut was upgraded from the wooden shed of last year to a large portacabin generously supplied by Orkney Aggregates – and the number of artists increased… Read more
Dig Diary – Wednesday, August 22, 2018
Day Thirty-Eight
That’s all folks!
Well folks, that’s it.
The 2018 dig season at the Ness is now over.
Trowels have been replaced with tyres and the huge task of… Read more
Dig Diary – Tuesday, August 21, 2018
Day Thirty-Seven
Plans, pics and 3D models…
It’s a sobering thought, but after today there is just one more excavation day left.
What do we do with it? Well, we… Read more
Dig Diary – Monday, August 20, 2018
Day Thirty-Six
Two new buildings and a possible Beaker shard
We must own up. There is a degree of lassitude around the site today, partly as a reaction to yesterday’s… Read more
Dig Diary – Sunday, August 19, 2018
Day Thirty-Five
Sunshine brings crowds flocking to final Open Day
Over 1,100 visitors flocked to the Ness today to view the site and special events laid on for the final… Read more
Dig Diary – Thursday, August 16, 2018
Day Thirty-Four
Second macehead of the season
We’ll break all the rules of diary writing and start with a couple of apologies.
If this diary is a little late in… Read more
The end is nigh…can you help?
As we enter the last week of the 2018 season, we would like to ask for some help from anyone free on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday next week (August 22, 23 and… Read more
Day Thirty-Three in pictures…
Rain brought work to a halt again today. But here’s a few pictures.… Read more
Dig Diary – Wednesday, August 15, 2018
Day Thirty-Three
The luck of the Irish!
Well, it had to happen.
After the best summer excavation weather that any of us can remember (in this country at least) the… Read more
The Ness in the news…
Some links to recent news stories and articles:
Elisabeth Holder – Working Away
British Archaeology Magazine – the printed magazine features a review of Woody Musgrove’s new book, Ness of… Read more
Treasures on display at Open Day
This weekend will see our final Open Day of the 2018 season.
Amongst other things, on display will be the axes, macehead, spatulas and incised stones found this year –… Read more
Day Thirty-Two in pictures…
A shorter than usual selection of activity around the site today – due to everyone being busy but also the fact that rain brought proceedings to an early close. As… Read more
Dig Diary – Tuesday, August 14, 2018
Day Thirty-Two
High hopes realised
Yesterday’s diary explained the normal phenomenon whereby the end of the excavation season leads to a feeling that nothing much is likely to happen.
It… Read more
‘Midden’ by Kate Greene
for weeks the Neolithic midden
clung to my clothes, hair, and skin
or lay embedded in fingerprints, under fingernails,
in open cuts
now it’s falling off slowly as dust… Read more
Dig Diary – Monday, August 13, 2018
Day Thirty-One
Surprise start to penultimate week
We are now in our penultimate week of excavation at the Ness and, as is usual so close to the end of the… Read more
