The Orkney Isles are rich in archaeological remains, which attract teams of archaeologists every year and make a major contribution to the islands’ tourist industry. Dr Gerrard described the work undertaken at two sites during 2002, 2004 and 2005 as part of an undergraduate training dig organized by the University of York. Excavation took place at Quoygrew on Westray and on the remote Brough of Deerness, a 30 metre high sea stack in east Mainland.

Both sites have been subject to earlier and subsequent investigation but their exact purpose remains unclear, whether monastic retreat or chiefly stronghold. The buildings excavated by the team from York University appear to be domestic dwellings, which had undergone several phases of remodeling and reuse and were occupied during the Viking Period (900-1473AD).

The shoreside site at Quoygrew was occupied continuously until the 1930s and appears to have originated as a low status settlement, pre-dating the higher status Trenabie which overlooks it from the hill above. Evidence from the building excavated between 2002 and 2005 suggests that it was occupied from 9th or 10th and was probably abandoned in the 16th century.

Five structures were identified built end on end, starting with a single dwelling room to which a bedroom was added in the 15th century. Eight phases of activity were identified within structure 1, showing how the location of the hearth was moved several times as the layout of the room changed. A byre was added to the south end of the building in the 13th to give shelter to the cattle during harsh winters.

The function of the site on the Brough of Deerness appears to have changed through time. Archaeological evidence suggests that it may have been occupied in pre-Viking times. The promontory would have afforded an excellent vantage point for Viking raiders and was used for artillery target practice during the 1st and 2nd World Wars. The domestic buildings clustered around a small chapel excavated in the 1970s. A fragment of 7th century glass was found in the corner of one building, which appears to have been subdivided for use as a store room before being abandoned in the 12th century. The houses had substantial stone walls but an absence of forestation meant that wood had to be carefully curated by using driftwood and broken ships.

Whilst a relative scarcity of finds across the two sites indicates a frugal approach to material culture, the contents of middens and rubbish dumps provide an abundance of evidence for analysis and interpretation. Animal bones dating from the Iron Age found in rubbish dumps on the Brough of Deerness support the use of the site in Pictish times, whilst one of the middens at Quoygrew, dating from 10th to 13th centuries and containing a concentration of limpits, illustrates the effect of human intervention on the environment as the size of limpits can be seen to reduce through increased fishing.

In Viking times Orkney occupied a key position on the seaway between Norway and the Atlantic Ocean. In addition to fertile conditions for farming and fishing, the islands provided a base for expeditions to Ireland and Man in the west and further north to the Faroes and Iceland. Clearly there is much still to be learned about these fascinating sites with their long sequence of occupation. Questions of chronology and function need to be studied in a wider regional and international context, alongside careful excavation such as that described by Dr Gerrard, and we look forward to further discovery and debate.

Jennifer Hunt