|
Uig Bay
Camas Uig (Uig Bay) is a bay on the west coast of the Isle of Lewis, in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland. The Lewis Chessmen were discovered in the dunes behind the beach. Camas Uig contains a variety of small islets including Fraoch Eilean, Leac Holm, Sgeir a' Chà is, Sgeir Liath, Sgeir Sheilibhig, Tom and Tolm. Camas Uig is in the parish of Uig and is part of the South Lewis, Harris and North Uist National Scenic Area. In 1831, the 12th-century Lewis Chessmen The Lewis chessmen ( no, Lewisbrikkene; gd, Fir-Tà ilisg; sco, Lewis chesmen) or Uig chessmen, named after the island or the bay where they were found, are a group of distinctive 12th-century chess pieces, along with other game pieces, most o ... were discovered in a small stone structure in the dunes behind the beach near Ardroil. Two large wooden chessmen, carved by Stephen Hayward, stand outside a museum on the machair at Ardroil, near where the hoard was found. References * Notes {{coord, 58, 12, 01, N, 7 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Isle Of Lewis
The Isle of Lewis ( gd, Eilean Leòdhais) or simply Lewis ( gd, Leòdhas, ) is the northern part of Lewis and Harris, the largest island of the Western Isles or Outer Hebrides archipelago in Scotland. The two parts are frequently referred to as if they were separate islands. The total area of Lewis is . Lewis is, in general, the lower-lying part of the island: the other part, Harris, is more mountainous. Due to its larger area and flatter, more fertile land, Lewis contains three-quarters of the population of the Western Isles, and the largest settlement, Stornoway. The island's diverse habitats are home to an assortment of flora and fauna, such as the golden eagle, red deer and seal, and are recognised in a number of conservation areas. Lewis has a Presbyterian tradition and a rich history. It was once part of the Norse Kingdom of the Isles. Today, life is very different from elsewhere in Scotland, with Sabbath observance, the Scottish Gaelic language and peat cutting retainin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Outer Hebrides
The Outer Hebrides () or Western Isles ( gd, Na h-Eileanan Siar or or ("islands of the strangers"); sco, Waster Isles), sometimes known as the Long Isle/Long Island ( gd, An t-Eilean Fada, links=no), is an island chain off the west coast of mainland Scotland. The islands are geographically coextensive with , one of the 32 unitary council areas of Scotland. They form part of the archipelago of the Hebrides, separated from the Scottish mainland and from the Inner Hebrides by the waters of the Minch, the Little Minch, and the Sea of the Hebrides. Scottish Gaelic is the predominant spoken language, although in a few areas English speakers form a majority. Most of the islands have a bedrock formed from ancient metamorphic rocks, and the climate is mild and oceanic. The 15 inhabited islands have a total population of and there are more than 50 substantial uninhabited islands. The distance from Barra Head to the Butt of Lewis is roughly . There are various important prehisto ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lewis Chessmen
The Lewis chessmen ( no, Lewisbrikkene; gd, Fir-Tà ilisg; sco, Lewis chesmen) or Uig chessmen, named after the island or the bay where they were found, are a group of distinctive 12th-century chess pieces, along with other game pieces, most of which are carved from walrus ivory. Discovered in 1831 on Lewis in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland, they may constitute some of the few complete, surviving medieval chess sets, although it is not clear if a set as originally made can be assembled from the pieces. When found, the hoard contained 93 artifacts: 78 chess pieces, 14 tablemen and one belt buckle. Today, 82 pieces are owned and usually exhibited by the British Museum in London, and the remaining 11 are at the National Museum of Scotland in Edinburgh. Additionally, a newly identified piece, a "warder", the equivalent of a castle or rook, was sold for £735,000 in July 2019. Four other major pieces, and many pawns, remain missing from the chess sets. Origin Most accounts ha ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Uig, Lewis
Uig ( gd, Ùig ), also known as ''Sgìr' Ùig'', is a civil parish and community in the west of the Isle of Lewis in the Outer Hebrides, Scotland. The Parish of Uig is one of the four civil parishes of the Isle of Lewis. It contains the districts of Carloway, East Uig, Bernera and West Uig (commonly known as Uig district or Uig Lewis). The name derives from the Norse word ''Vik'' meaning 'a bay'. Uig District Geography Uig (Lewis) otherwise known as West Uig is the largest and most sparsely populated district of the Isle of Lewis. It contains the highest point on the island, Mealasbhal () and also another six of the highest ten peaks. The deepest lake, Loch Suaineabhat at , is the deepest offshore lake in the British Isles. The coast has significant inlets notably Little Loch Roag, Langabhat, Loch Thamnabhagh, Loch Resort and Uig Bay. Uig Bay contains a vast strand of shell beach which produces a fertile "machair" fringe. Other shell sand beaches and machair are found at Trà ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
South Lewis, Harris And North Uist NSA
South Lewis, Harris and North Uist is a large national scenic area (NSA) in the Western Isles of Scotland. It is one of 40 such areas in Scotland, which are defined so as to identify areas of exceptional scenery and to ensure its protection from inappropriate development. The designated area covers 202,388 ha in total, of which 112,301 ha is on land, with a further 90,087 ha being marine (i.e. below low tide level), making it the largest of the NSAs in both total and marine area. The designated area includes the mountainous south west of Lewis, all of Harris, the Sound of Harris and the northern part of North Uist. National scenic areas are primarily designated due to the scenic qualities of an area, however NSAs may well have other special qualities, for example related to culture, history, archaeology, geology or wildlife. Areas with such qualities may be protected via other national and international designations that overlap with the NSA designation. Th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Scottish Natural Heritage
NatureScot ( gd, NÃ darAlba), which was formerly known as Scottish Natural Heritage, is an executive non-departmental public body of the Scottish Government responsible for the country's natural heritage, especially its natural, genetic and scenic diversity. It advises the Scottish Government on nature conservation, and acts as a government agent in the delivery of conservation designations, i.e. national nature reserves, local nature reserves, national parks, Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs), Special Areas of Conservation, Special Protection Areas and the national scenic areas. It receives annual funding from the Government in the form of Grant in Aid to deliver Government priorities for the natural heritage. NatureScot is the Scottish Government's adviser on all aspects of nature, wildlife management and landscape across Scotland, and also helps the Scottish Government meet its responsibilities under European environmental laws, particularly in relation to th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ardroil
Ardroil ( gd, Eadar Dhà Fhadhail) is a village on the Isle of Lewis in the Outer Hebrides, Scotland. Ardroil is within the parish of Uig. Geography Ardroil is more accurately the name of a fertile machair district by the expanse of Uig Bay between two rivers: The Forsa River and the Red River. The land is made fertile from the wind blown shell sand which has fertilised the black earth for centuries. History What is today known as Ardroil is an elongated township of re-settled crofts from five previously cleared settlements. These clearances occurred in the 1830s as the landowner, the Earl of Seaforth, decided that the best land should be taken from tenant crofters and given to sheep farmers. This particular clearance evicted the tenants of the former healthily populated townships of Capadale (Capadal), Penny Donald (Peighinn Dhomhnaill), Balgowan (Baile Ghobhainn), Balgreasach (Baile Ghreusaich) and Erista (Earastadh). The inhabitants were forcibly sent to other parts of Lewi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Machair
A machair (; sometimes machar in English) is a fertile low-lying grassy plain found on part of the northwest coastlines of Ireland and Scotland, in particular the Outer Hebrides. The best examples are found on North and South Uist, Harris and Lewis. Etymology ''Machair'' is a Gaelic word meaning "fertile plain", but the word is now also used in scientific literature to describe the dune grassland unique to Western Scotland and north-west Ireland. It had been used by naturalists since 1926, but the term was not adopted by scientists until the 1940s. The word is used in a number of placenames in Ireland and Scotland, even in areas where no machair has ever been supported. In Scotland, some Gaelic speakers use ''machair'' as a general term for the whole dune system, including the dune ridge, while others restrict its use to the extensive flat grasslands inland of the dune ridge. In Ireland, the word has been used only in place-names, and the habitat's existence there was only re ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bays Of Scotland
A bay is a recessed, coastal body of water that directly connects to a larger main body of water, such as an ocean, a lake, or another bay. A large bay is usually called a gulf, sea, sound, or bight. A cove is a small, circular bay with a narrow entrance. A fjord is an elongated bay formed by glacial action. A bay can be the estuary of a river, such as the Chesapeake Bay, an estuary of the Susquehanna River. Bays may also be nested within each other; for example, James Bay is an arm of Hudson Bay in northeastern Canada. Some large bays, such as the Bay of Bengal and Hudson Bay, have varied marine geology. The land surrounding a bay often reduces the strength of winds and blocks waves. Bays may have as wide a variety of shoreline characteristics as other shorelines. In some cases, bays have beaches, which "are usually characterized by a steep upper foreshore with a broad, flat fronting terrace".Maurice Schwartz, ''Encyclopedia of Coastal Science'' (2006), p. 129. Bays were sig ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Beaches Of The Outer Hebrides
A beach is a landform alongside a body of water which consists of loose particles. The particles composing a beach are typically made from rock, such as sand, gravel, shingle, pebbles, etc., or biological sources, such as mollusc shells or coralline algae. Sediments settle in different densities and structures, depending on the local wave action and weather, creating different textures, colors and gradients or layers of material. Though some beaches form on inland freshwater locations such as lakes and rivers, most beaches are in coastal areas where wave or current action deposits and reworks sediments. Erosion and changing of beach geologies happens through natural processes, like wave action and extreme weather events. Where wind conditions are correct, beaches can be backed by coastal dunes which offer protection and regeneration for the beach. However, these natural forces have become more extreme due to climate change, permanently altering beaches at ver ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Viking Age Sites In Scotland
Vikings ; non, vÃkingr is the modern name given to seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway and Sweden), who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded and settled throughout parts of Europe.Roesdahl, pp. 9–22. They also voyaged as far as the Mediterranean, North Africa, Volga Bulgaria, the Middle East, and North America. In some of the countries they raided and settled in, this period is popularly known as the Viking Age, and the term "Viking" also commonly includes the inhabitants of the Scandinavian homelands as a collective whole. The Vikings had a profound impact on the early medieval history of Scandinavia, the British Isles, France, Estonia, and Kievan Rus'. Expert sailors and navigators aboard their characteristic longships, Vikings established Norse settlements and governments in the British Isles, the Faroe Islands, Iceland, Greenland, Normandy, and the Baltic coast, as well as alon ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
