YARROWS
An Archaeological Landscape
THE YARROWS LANDSCAPE: TEN THOUSAND YEARS OF ARCHAEOLOGY. ‘…one can scarcely go a quarter of a mile in any direction among these hills without meeting with ancient structural remains of one kind or another’ (Anderson 1868, 504).
Archaeology of Yarrows, Caithness
Situated in the north-east of Caithness, the Yarrows and Watenan area is one of the most important archaeological and historic landscapes in Britain. It is home to over 250 sites used and reused for thousands of years. Choose a trail. Explore the landscape. Look for old houses. Walk amongst the dead. Your journey starts here.
Yarrows through time
Rich in history, Yarrows is a breathtaking place to explore. Around 10,000 years ago Mesolithic hunter-gatherers arrived in the area searching for deer and plants. Then, around 6000 years ago Neolithic farmers settled here. Later, Bronze Age communities erected mysterious stone settings and buried their dead in cists, often with lavish grave goods. Around 2000 years ago Iron Age chiefs built huge stone towers, beacons of belonging that dominated the landscape. During the Early Historic period many individuals became Christian, some lived in castles, others in farmsteads. The Post-medieval period is dominated by crofts, farms and small-scale industry. Modern times are haunted by two world wars. Choose a period and learn more about the history of Yarrows.
Neolithic
Over 5000 years ago farmers arrived in Yarrows, clearing the land for their animals and crops. Although we have not yet found their houses and farms we have plenty of evidence for their burials, beliefs and rituals. They created a dramatic landscape dominated by large communal stone tombs called chambered cairns, houses for the dead.
Bronze Age
Around 4000 years ago there was a change around Yarrows. Bronze replaced stone for the manufacture of tools, weapons and jewellery. Gold and bronze were the new forms of wealth. Beliefs and rituals remained important but people were now buried in individual graves, many surrounded by curious stone settings. The farmers lived in timber roundhouses and farmed the land around them, developing techniques and transforming the landscape.
Iron Age
Around 2500 years ago people began to build new houses across Yarrows - brochs, forts and crannogs. These new defensive structures were associated with the rise of important people – chiefs. Chiefs were the kings of local groups: leaders who controlled farms and territories. They had the wealth and power to access important resources such as iron and Roman objects. Although we do not know much about Iron Age beliefs and rituals, there are some gruesome clues!
Medieval
Around 1500 years ago, the Picts ruled the north of Scotland. They littered the land with their stone houses and gained a rather savage reputation with their southern enemies, fighting and raiding. During this time, another group of raiders arrived: the Vikings. They settled along the coasts and riverbanks of Northern Scotland and the islands, encountering the Picts as they went. Unfortunately, we know very little about the daily lives of these two groups in Yarrows. Their interactions, houses, burials and defences remain quite a mystery.
Post-Medieval
Around 800 years ago, the rich and poor divide began to grow. Small dwellings shared by man and beast stood in the shadows of beautiful castles, the houses of kings. Demands on farming increased so the land and technology had to be improved. Stones were cleared, mills were built and machines replaced labour. These improvements reaped great rewards for some but many lost their jobs and homes.
Explore the landscape using aerial laser scan data - swipe to reveal the Ordnance Survey's map of Yarrows, made over 100 years ago
Tombs for the Ancestors
A chambered cairn at Warehouse West
There are cairns all over the Yarrows landscape. Some are modern markers, while others are related to farming. As the name suggests, these cairns are for burials. Around 4000 years ago, cairns were no longer being built up over stone chambers encasing the bones of many. Instead, individuals were placed in cists which were then covered or their remains were simply buried under mounds of stone.
Explore the Landscape with LiDAR
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Ut vitae odio lorem. Aenean ultricies consectetur nunc, ac pharetra ipsum dignissim sed. Integer dictum arcu quis lorem vulputate, quis semper massa mollis. Nunc sodales turpis et rutrum pharetra. Duis ut erat et leo porttitor vulputate ut eget turpis. Fusce rhoncus pellentesque arcu, ut ullamcorper turpis semper id. Interdum et malesuada fames ac ante ipsum primis in faucibus. Duis vehicula velit et dolor iaculis, bibendum rhoncus magna facilisis. Fusce eleifend mi a sodales ultrices. Aliquam mauris tortor, lobortis nec elit sit amet, maximus viverra mauris.
Archaeology of Yarrows, Caithness
South Yarrows North: a classic Caithness long cairn
For the first 5000 years of Yarrows' history we know more about the dead than the living! We have little evidence for their houses but we find burials at almost every turn, chambered cairns being the oldest. These are huge mounds of stones covering small chambers. Hundreds of people were buried in these dark tombs. Objects such as pots, stone axes and food offerings were also placed in the tombs. Spotting them is easy – they are some of the most conspicuous features in the landscape. Take time to explore these houses of the dead.
Walk the Yarrows Trail
01 / 12
1
South Yarrows North
This 5000 year old burial tomb was used for burying important members of the community. In 1865 two local archaeologists: Joseph Anderson and Robert Shearer recovered human and animal bone, some burnt, from the chambers. Later, a cist was built on the site - a pot and jet beaded necklace placed beside the deceased as an offering. Like many sites across Caithness the cairn had been used as a quarry before the 19th century excavations and since that date the monument continues to decay.
2
South Yarrows South
One of a pair, this chambered cairn was built 5000 years ago and used for burying different members of the community over centuries. The cairn had different compartments - the largest visible at one end. If you visit the site look out for the distinctive horns at the ends - ceremonies and rituals may have taken place here before the bodies were placed in the tomb. Like many sites in the area, the cairn was excavated in the 19th and early 20th centuries by Anderson, Shearer, Barry and Nicolson. They found pottery and flint tools along with human remains - offerings for the afterlife.
3
Yarrows farmstead
This is a 19th century farmstead. Not only does it have the usual farm buildings such as a dwelling and a barn but a short track used to lead down to a boathouse and pier on the banks of the Loch of Yarrows.
4
Yarrows Fort
Do you think this fort is well defended? Cliffs form natural defences and the whole site is enclosed by a, now, low bank. The remains of walls hint at being barriers for people hoping to enter the fort. Over 2000 years ago, this would have been a very commanding structure. However, no forts in Caithness have ever been excavated and this one shows no signs of houses within it. It may not in fact be a settlement at all, but rather a ritual enclosure.
5
Warehouse North
This cairn, one of the five Cairns of Warehouse, was built over 5000 years ago. If you visit the site look out for a passageway that leads into a central chamber. Although, it is now in ruins people once had to crouch down or even crawl to get through this dark stone tunnel. Can you spot upright slabs? These are compartments where many different people were buried over hundreds of years.
6
Warehouse West
All that remains of this stone tomb is a singular large stone. 5000 years ago there was a chambered cairn here where people buried the dead. It remained a sacred place for over 1000 years, continuing as a burial site. Several Bronze Age cists were built within it. People wanted to be close to their ancestors and their past. Even later, this was rumoured to be the site of a Pictish house: rituals and death replaced with domestic life.
7
Warehouse
Chambered cairn
8
Warehouse South
This chambered cairn was used for burying members of the Neolithic community. Built over 5000 years ago, different body parts were placed in different parts of the tomb. Unlike today, the emphasis was on communal burial - not individual. Generations of people were buried here as the site was used for centuries. Like many other sites in and around Yarrows this cairn was excavated by Rhind and Anderson in the mid 19th century. As part of this project, a team re-excavated the site in 2013 [LINK TO FINAL REPORT].
9
Warehouse East
This cairn was excavated in 1853 by Alexander Rhind and again in 1865 by Anderson - two of the earliest pioneers of Scottish archaeology. Just like they did over 150 years ago we can peer into the passageway and see the compartments where many people were buried over 5000 years ago!
10
Yarrows
Hut circles are the earliest houses that we have found in Yarrows so far. These houses built and lived in over 3000 years ago proved to be a successful style. For over 2000 years people continued to build varities of round houses out of stone and timber all over Scotland.
11
Loch of Yarrows
Houses are abandoned, new ones are built. This hut circle sits on one side of a small stream, a short distance from a collection of other Bronze Age houses. Could it be that this small stone hut was abandoned in favour of being part of a bigger community? Perhaps this family chose to work alone. These houses built over 3000 years ago might not even have been occupied in the same century! Until we can date the remains, our questions will be unaswered.
12
Broch of Yarrows
This is one of the best-preserved brochs in the Yarrows area. It is a complex settlement with defences, outhouses, internal features and later occupation. The broch and these outbuildings are encompassed by a large ditch which once could have formed a moat. That's a lot of defence for a simple farming community! 2000 years ago this site was home to a whole community, from leaders to servants. For some time, people had been choosing to live in groups and work together and they went from strength to strength. Even after the broch was abandoned, the site was not. Pictish houses were built. Burials were dug into the stone. The site remained significant, and still is today.
