The Modern Antiquarian. Stone Circles, Ancient Sites, Neolithic Monuments, Ancient Monuments, Prehistoric Sites, Megalithic MysteriesThe Modern Antiquarian

Mussaquoy

Artificial Mound

Fieldnotes

Found the other end of the possible cist. The distance between the orthostats inner faces is 1.56m and they are offset, the south end of that at the right being in line with the centre of the left-hand one. Measurements are as follows :-

LH 0.56x0.08m, protruding 0.12m from the soil at either end and 0.27m in the middle. RH has disparate edges, the whole being 0.46x0.15m protruding 0.13m, the reduced face 0.33x0.05m showing 0.08m.

The latter, also has a stone lying down against it, only 0.6x0.26m compared to the other's 1x max. 0.48m. But there is at least one other stone between the slabs so they would appear to date from a later period rather than being co-eval.

It seems curious to me that this mound is in such an odd-shaped 'field', even more so as this is only half of larger section of similarly strange shaped 'field'. Though the eastern half appears fairly level, but I do wonder if it too once produced archaeological finds, as in Orkney farmers often keep odd pieces of land out of cultivation because at some time in the (often forgotten) past there was a reason for so doing - only occasionally do we find what site was at these places.
wideford Posted by wideford
23rd March 2007ce
Edited 19th June 2007ce

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