Cairns of Unstan and Cuween

The cairn of Unstan is located on a headland close to the Stenness log, from where one sees the stone circles of Brodgar and Stenness, and a little further, the site of Maeshowe.

This cairn circular measuring 13 meters in diameter is located as an hybrid between the simpler cairns of Maeshowe and those of the remainder of the ïles. The entry, on the side east, is prolonged by a narrow, long passage 7 meters 80, which leads to the principal room.

Discovered in 1884, this cairn contained several skeletons, whose bones were mixed, which shows that this place was re-used as a tomb during centuries. Moreover, the Vikings, as in Maeshowe, penetrated inside and left traces of their passage. There, they are runes and a stylized bird, engraved on the lintel of the entry. Perhaps the bird represents the symbol of the heart and its voyage.

Several potteries, at the same time discovered, are very particular and are used as reference under the name of Unstan.

The principal room makes 8 mètres40. It is divided into 5 compartments by stones posed vertically which can be posterior elements with construction. On the Western side a driving passage to a smaller room opens.

The roof, set up in 1934, protects the unit. Unfortunately, it is out of concrete. Energies are thus cut the cosmic one.

Apart from the cairn one finds the remainders of two ditches and two ramparts. Nobody knows if they have a relationship with the cairn, and if they were built at the same time. The official dating of the site is -3.400 before J.C.

www.megalithic.org.uk

The cairn of Cuween is close to the village of Finstown. It was discovered in 1901. It is gone back to 3.000 before J.C.

It comprises a room central, rectangular, and 4 smaller rooms whose entries are slightly with the top of the level of the floor.

Locally known under the term of “Fairy Knowe”, he had already been visited by “explorers” having penetrated by effraction by destroying part of the roof. The current roof is vraissemblablement less high than the original one, even if it atteind an honest height of more than 2meters.

The access is done by a narrow passage of less than one meter in height and 5 meters 50 length. The style approaches Maeshowe. The principal room is however roomy. On the walls, one finds engravings resembling those of Skara Brae, with angular reasons. The lintel shows several arcs and of the small triangles.

During the excavations, many skeletons were found, among which 8 men (what tends to prove, by this not very significant number, that the cairn was emptied periodically in order to receive the more recent remainders of the members of the tribe), 24 craniums of dogs (what can also dismount that this animal was the totemic figure of the tribe, or although the dog was regarded as guide of hearts, which brings closer once again the Egyptians and Anubis), of bone of oxen and birds.

Higher, on the top of the hill, remainders in my opinion of a stone circle about which nobody speaks. Under the beating rain, the landscape of moor is of a severe beauty, that the stone cairns posed the ones on the others by the visitors cannot brighten. It releases from the unit a certain opression. I did not feel very well it high, I did not want to remain the night as in the cairn of maeshowe.