Prehistoric pottery use – the path to and start of a PhD
“The important thing is not to stop questioning. Curiosity has its own reason for existing.”
Albert Einstein
By Julia Becher
For as long as I can remember, curiosity was my… Read more
About the Ness of Brodgar
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.
Wednesday wildlife – a curious owl
This week’s photographs from around the Ness of Brodgar from site director Nick Card.… Read more
Neolithic Orkney links from the Current Archaeology archive
Three articles from the archives of Current Archaeology magazine are now available online:
The Ness of Brodgar: uncovering Orkney’s Neolithic heart (2017)
A tale of two Neolithics? Investigating the evolution… Read more
Summer exhibition puts The Cairns excavation in the spotlight
The Stromness Museum’s summer exhibition opens today, Saturday, and puts the ongoing excavation at The Cairns, South Ronaldsay, firmly in the spotlight.
The Cairns: Living in the Landscape, the exhibition… Read more
Structure Fourteen – updated and expanded
Our fully revised entry for Structure Fourteen is now available in the “structures” section.… Read more
Palm print on Structure Ten pottery sherd left by an adult male
“I think we’ve got a palm print.”
Those were the words of our pottery specialist Roy Towers at Ness HQ a few weeks ago.
And he was right.
Detailed Reflectance… Read more
Wednesday wildlife – bird calls
Wednesday is upon us again, so here’s a selection of photographs from around the Ness by dig director Nick Card.
… Read more
New 3d model of Structure Ten’s decorated foundation deposit
This morning we’re premiering a new 3d model from Archaeology Institute UHI postgraduate Gary Lloyd.
The model shows the large, elaborately decorated stone unearthed in Structure Ten in 2013.
It… Read more
OAS recruiting worker for Ness of Brodgar shop
Orkney Archaeology Society is looking for someone to work in the Ness of Brodgar fundraising shop for seven weeks this summer.
The shop is open 9.30am – 4.30pm on weekdays… Read more
Structure One – the heart of the Ness
The updates keep coming and this week we’re focusing on Structure One – the first building found on site over 19 years ago!
The building’s entry in the structures section… Read more
Woodturned macehead among new additions to Ness shop
We’ve added two new woodturned treasures to our online shop – a replica macehead and a round-bottomed bowl with decoration inspired by the Neolithic Grooved Ware pottery found on site.… Read more
Wednesday wildlife – a rare visitor to Orkney shores
A special guest – a glossy ibis – in among this week’s photographs from site director Nick Card.
… Read more
The central paved area and standing stone
A new addition to our excavation background section this week, dealing with the “central paved area” and standing stone between Structures One, Eight, Twelve and Twenty-Nine.
Click here to access.… Read more
Wednesday wildlife – on land and loch
This week’s selection of pictures from the lens of Ness of Brodgar dig director Nick Card.… Read more
Reproduction axehead auction raises £600 for Ness dig
The auction of a reproduction flint axehead, donated by the family of Edinburgh-based sculptor and stone carver Andy McFetters, has raised £600 for the Ness of Brodgar excavation fund.
The… Read more
Links: Food at the Ness and exhibition artefacts
A few audio links with a distinctive Ness of Brodgar flavour:
Food of the Isles – an episode looking at the history of food in Orkney, with Anne Mitchell discussing… Read more
Wednesday wildlife – out and about
This week’s selection of wildlife photographs from around the Ness from excavation director Nick Card.… Read more
Video: Connections across Britain and Ireland during the age of Stonehenge
Ness of Brodgar excavation director Nick Card was a speaker in a British Museum talk last week on links between Neolithic Orkney and Britain and Ireland.
Chairing the event,… Read more
Structure Eight – the ‘many coloured hall’
With the 2022 season a few months away, we’ve been doing some updates across the site.
Today’s is a complete rewrite of Structure Eight’s page, detailing the latest thoughts on… Read more
Wednesday wildlife – serenity, squabbles and seal
This week’s photographs from around the Ness by site director Nick Card.… Read more
Site tours and an open day returning to the Ness this summer
We’re delighted to announce that this summer, for the first time since 2019, we will be offering daily site tours of the Ness dig.
The excavation re-opens to the public… Read more
