Burroughston Broch is an
Iron Age
The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age ( Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age ( Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostl ...
broch located on the island of
Shapinsay
Shapinsay (, sco, Shapinsee) is one of the Orkney Islands off the north coast of mainland Scotland. There is one village on the island, Balfour, from which roll-on/roll-off car ferries sail to Kirkwall on the Orkney Mainland. Balfour Castle ...
in the
Orkney Islands, in Scotland (). The site overlooks the
North Sea
The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Norway, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium. An epeiric sea, epeiric sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the ...
on the northeast part of Shapinsay. Excavated in the mid 19th century, Burroughston Broch is still well-preserved. The
drystone
Dry stone, sometimes called drystack or, in Scotland, drystane, is a building method by which structures are constructed from stones without any mortar to bind them together. Dry stone structures are stable because of their construction m ...
walls are up to four metres thick in some parts and there is a complete chamber intact off the entrance passage. Some remains of stone fittings are evident in the interior.
Location
Burroughston Broch overlooks the
North Sea
The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Norway, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium. An epeiric sea, epeiric sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the ...
at the northeast corner of
Shapinsay
Shapinsay (, sco, Shapinsee) is one of the Orkney Islands off the north coast of mainland Scotland. There is one village on the island, Balfour, from which roll-on/roll-off car ferries sail to Kirkwall on the Orkney Mainland. Balfour Castle ...
island, about 4 miles from the ferry pier.
Slightly to the south lies
Linton Bay
The Bay of Linton is a bay on the east coast on the island of Shapinsay
Shapinsay (, sco, Shapinsee) is one of the Orkney Islands off the north coast of mainland Scotland. There is one village on the island, Balfour, from which roll-on/rol ...
. The broch stands at the foot of a gently sloping field just above the low rocky shoreline.
It is one of the best preserved brochs in Orkney.
Description
The walls of Burroughston Broch have an external diameter of around 18 metres, and an internal diameter of around 10 metres.
From the outside, the building appears as a grassy mound, and little of the outer wall is exposed.
The entrance passage is on the east side, and is about 4 metres long, 1.2 metres wide and 1.8 metres high.
There is an elongated guard room opening from the left side of the passage.
Inside the broch, the outer face of the upper gallery is still visible, and traces of an opening to the upper gallery are still apparent.
A deep well is present in the broch floor: the upper part being dry stone masonry, the lower being cut into the rock.
In the sloping area in front of the broch entrance are traces of "out-buildings" now covered with turf.
A wall, ditch and rampart, which probably once encircled the broch, are still evident around the structure.
Excavations
The broch was excavated around 1862 ("shortly after the discovery of
Maes Howe") by the estate-workers of Colonel D. Balfour under the direction of the antiquarian
George Petrie.
Petrie made notes on the structures while
Sir Henry Dryden made a plan of them.
Excavation was confined to the interior of the broch and to a small area immediately outside the entrance.
Little information is known about the finds. According to Petrie, they were mostly deer-horn fragments, many ox and sheep bones and "several rude stone vessels of different sizes", including a possible triangular lamp.
See also
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Balfour Castle
Balfour Castle is a historic building on the southwest of Shapinsay, Orkney Islands. Though built around an older structure that dates at least from the 18th century, the present castle was built in 1847, commissioned by Colonel David Balfour, ...
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Geo of Ork
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Quholm
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The Ouse
The Ouse is a tidal estuary in northern Shapinsay, Orkney Islands. This water body has been shown on early maps of the island in a very similar shape to its current geometry. The Ouse is fed by small rivulets and upland springs that rise on the ...
References
External links
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{{Broch
Brochs in Orkney
Prehistoric Orkney
Shapinsay
Scheduled Ancient Monuments in Orkney