Scheduled Monument

Vinquoy Hill, chambered cairn, EdaySM1410

Status: Designated

Documents

Where documents include maps, the use of this data is subject to terms and conditions (https://portal.historicenvironment.scot/termsandconditions).

The legal document available for download below constitutes the formal designation of the monument under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979. The additional details provided on this page are provided for information purposes only and do not form part of the designation. Historic Environment Scotland accepts no liability for any loss or damages arising from reliance on any inaccuracies within this additional information.

Summary

Date Added
10/10/1936
Last Date Amended
20/10/2014
Type
Prehistoric ritual and funerary: chambered cairn
Local Authority
Orkney Islands
Parish
Eday
NGR
HY 56009 38116
Coordinates
356009, 1038116

Description

The monument is a Maeshowe type chambered cairn, dating to the Neolithic period (probably early third millennium BC). It survives as a circular heather-covered mound, measuring approximately 18m in diameter and standing up to 3m high. The cairn was excavated in 1857 by Farrer and Hebden, who broke into the chamber through the top and cleared the entrance passage. The tomb contains an irregular-shaped central chamber, which originally had a corbelled roof, and four side compartments entered from the NW, SW, SE and NE sides of the chamber. The entrance is on the S (lower) side and the 5m-long passage and chamber are partly subterranean, cut back into the hill. Unlike most Orcadian chambered cairns, the tomb is built of sandstone. The monument has been restored to enable public access and is now part of the Eday Heritage Trail. The monument occupies a conspicuous position, almost at the highest point in the island, atop Vinquoy Hill on the N side of Eday, at 74m above sea level, overlooking Calf Sound. The monument was originally scheduled in 1936, but the documentation did not meet modern standards: the present amendment rectifies this.

The scheduled area is circular on plan, measuring 30m in diameter, to include the remains described above and an area around them within which evidence relating to the monument's construction, use and abandonment is expected to survive, as shown in red on the accompanying map.

Statement of National Importance

The monument is of national importance because it has inherent potential to make a significant contribution to our understanding of the past, particularly the dating, design and construction of burial monuments, and the nature of belief systems and burial practices during the Neolithic period. In Orkney, and Eday in particular, chambered cairns are an important component of the wider prehistoric landscape. They are often focal points and can inform our understanding of prehistoric land-use and social organisation. Across Scotland, such funerary monuments are often our main or only source of evidence for human activity during the Neolithic period. The loss of the monument would significantly diminish our ability to appreciate and understand the meaning and importance of death and burial in prehistoric times and the placing of such monuments within the landscape.

References

Bibliography

RCAHMS records the site as HY53NE 9

References

Davidson, J L and Henshall, A S 1989, The chambered cairns of Orkney: an inventory of the structures and their contents, Edinburgh, 168-169, no 53.

Hedges, J W 1983, Isbister: a chambered tomb in Orkney, BAR British Series 115.

Henshall, A S 1963, The chambered tombs of Scotland, vol 1, Edinburgh, 244-245, no 53.

Petrie, G 1863, 'The Pict's-houses in the Orkneys', Archaeol J 20, 33-4.

RCAHMS 1946, The Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland. Twelfth report with an inventory of the ancient monuments of Orkney and Shetland, 3v, Edinburgh, 54, no 216.

Ritchie, A 1996, Orkney and Shetland, 'Exploring Scotland's Heritage' series, Edinburgh, 165, no 99.

About Scheduled Monuments

Historic Environment Scotland is responsible for designating sites and places at the national level. These designations are Scheduled monuments, Listed buildings, Inventory of gardens and designed landscapes and Inventory of historic battlefields.

We make recommendations to the Scottish Government about historic marine protected areas, and the Scottish Ministers decide whether to designate.

Scheduling is the process that identifies, designates and provides statutory protection for monuments and archaeological sites of national importance as set out in the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979.

We schedule sites and monuments that are found to be of national importance using the selection guidance published in Designation Policy and Selection Guidance (2019)

Scheduled monument records provide an indication of the national importance of the scheduled monument which has been identified by the description and map. The description and map (see ‘legal documents’ above) showing the scheduled area is the designation of the monument under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979. The statement of national importance and additional information provided are supplementary and provided for general information purposes only. Historic Environment Scotland accepts no liability for any loss or damages arising from reliance on any inaccuracies within the statement of national importance or additional information. These records are not definitive historical or archaeological accounts or a complete description of the monument(s).

The format of scheduled monument records has changed over time. Earlier records will usually be brief. Some information will not have been recorded and the map will not be to current standards. Even if what is described and what is mapped has changed, the monument is still scheduled.

Scheduled monument consent is required to carry out certain work, including repairs, to scheduled monuments. Applications for scheduled monument consent are made to us. We are happy to discuss your proposals with you before you apply and we do not charge for advice or consent. More information about consent and how to apply for it can be found on our website at www.historicenvironment.scot.

Find out more about scheduling and our other designations at www.historicenvironment.scot/advice-and-support. You can contact us on 0131 668 8914 or at designations@hes.scot.

Images

There are no images available for this record, you may want to check Canmore for images relating to Vinquoy Hill, chambered cairn, Eday

There are no images available for this record.

Search Canmore

Printed: 28/03/2024 18:27