Westray

Westray schoolchildren met Scotland’s oldest face — the Orkney Venus — at the Westray Heritage Centre today, Friday, May 14. The children were the first visitors to the Westray exhibition, which opens to the public on Saturday, May 15.

The visit is part of the official opening of the exhibition, which sees the figurine return to Westray for the summer, after a tour of sites across Scotland.

During the day, the children from Pierowall school were joined by residents of the local care home, then, in the evening, there will be an open evening for the community at night.

The 5,000 year old figurine — known locally as the Westray Wife — attracted international interest when it was discovered last summer by archaeologists working on Historic Scotland’s excavation at the Links of Noltland, in Westray.

The figurine is the only known Neolithic carving of a human form to have been found in Scotland.

The exhibition will run in Westray until October, before the carving completes its tour at the Orkney Museum, in Kirkwall.

orkneyjar.com/archaeology/westraywife2.htm

The earliest human figure (now commonly known as the Westray Wife) to be found in Scotland is to go on temporary display at Edinburgh Castle.

More info :

news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/edinburgh_and_east/8309503.stm

A carving believed to be Scotland’s earlist human face, dating back thousands of years, has been found on the Orkney island of Westray.

The small Neolithic sandstone human figurine is believed to be up to 5,000 years old.

Experts have described the find as one of “astonishing rarity”.

Archaeologists made the discovery – measuring just 3.5cm by 3cm – at Historic Scotland’s excavation at the Links of Noltland.

It is believed to be the only Neolithic carving of a human form to have been discovered in Scotland – with only two others said to have been found elsewhere in the UK.

The carving is flat with a round head on top of a lozenge-shaped body. The face has heavy brows, two dots for eyes and an oblong for a nose. It is thought other scratches on top of the skull could be hair.

A pair of circles on the chest are being interpreted as representing breasts, and arms have been etched at either side.

It is believed a regular pattern of crossed markings on the reverse could suggest the fabric of the woman’s clothing.

The discovery of the carving is said to be of great importance
Richard Strachan, project manager and senior archaeologist with the Historic Scotland cultural resources team, said: “The find was made by archaeologist Jakob Kainz.

“It looked like the stone had been carved. As some of the mud crumbled off he saw an eye, then another and a nose, then a whole face staring back.

“It was one of those Eureka moments, none of the archaeology team have seen anything like it before, it’s incredibly exciting. The discovery of a Neolithic carving of a human was quite a moment for everyone to share in.”

Culture Minister Mike Russell said: “This is a find of tremendous importance – representations of people from this period are incredibly unusual in Britain.

“What we are seeing here is the earliest known human face in Scotland. It once again emphasises the tremendous importance of Orkney’s archaeology and also of the Links of Noltland site.”

The building being excavated was once a farmhouse, standing in a network of fields.

news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/north_east/8212074.stm

More news here as the dig has been extended, interestingly 10 pairs of ox horns found imbedded in a Neolithic house wall ...

news.scotsman.com/scotland/Dig-extended-after-ancient-figurine.5612733.jp

A new structure has been discovered beneath beach sands on Westray in the Orkney Islands at the Links of Noltland. This Neolithic find is constructed with dressed stone and was clearly intended to look impressive from the outside. Dating to approximately 2000 BC, the building is quite different from most Bronze Age structures in this region......Read the full article by Caroline Lewis.

C14 dates for burials at the Knowe of Skea (HY44SW 2) on the edge of Berst Ness [HY44SW 3] push back the age of these from Viking to 200BCE-400ACE. Many of them (mostly children) consisted of bagged bodies dropped vertically into spaces created by removing material from the structures’ walls. Article with photo on Sigurd’s site orkneyjar.com/archaeology/knoweskea2006.htm