The ruins of an “incredibly rare” 5,000-year-old tomb have been uncovered on one of the Scottish Orkney Islands, as stated by National Museums Scotland on Tuesday.
The excavation at Holm, East Mainland, Orkney, revealed a stone structure accessed through a 7-meter (23-foot) -long passage and traces of a cairn – or pile of stones – that would have covered it, representing the “pinnacle of Neolithic engineering in northern Britain,” according to the statement.
In one of the six smaller side cells surrounding a large stone chamber, fourteen articulated skeletons of men, women, and children, as well as other human remains, were discovered.
Hugo Anderson-Whymark, one of the excavation’s co-directors and senior curator of prehistory (Neolithic) at National Museums Scotland, told CNN, “In the Neolithic, it would have been an incredibly impressive 15-meter diameter, enormous mound, very substantial stonework, very impressive architecture. Those cells are real feats of engineering.”
Two of the skeletons were found in an embracing position, with two children placed over their heads, though their relationships have not been determined yet.
Archaeologist Vicki Cummings, head of the School of History, Archaeology, and Religion at Cardiff University, who co-directed the excavation, described the preservation of the remains as amazing and added, “It is incredibly rare to find these tomb deposits, even in well-preserved chambered tombs, and these remains will enable new insights into all aspects of these peoples’ lives.”
Only 12 other similar tombs, known as Maes Howe-type passage graves, are found in Orkney. Most of these are visible, unlike this buried discovery.
According to the statement, the tomb was mostly destroyed in the late 18th or early 19th century for construction purposes, but previous rudimentary excavations in 1896 revealed eight skeletons, suggesting a ruined tomb.
Further clues from James Walls Cursiter’s private collection of notes allowed archaeologists to conduct a geophysical survey and proceed with the excavation.
Anderson-Whymark commented, “It was quite a surprise to make that discovery. It’s such a big thing but yet today it’s just a gently rolling field of grass. There’s nothing on the surface to suggest this tomb ever existed there, but it would have once been an incredible monument. We’re fortunate they’ve left us just enough of it.”
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