The Neolithic - 4000-2500BC
The
abundant evidence of Orkney's human history begins to appear at some
point in the first half of the fourth millennium BC.
By this time the bands of hunter-gatherers of
the Mesolithic had adopted agriculture and small groups of farmers were making their way across the
Pentland Firth from northern and western Scotland to settle in
the fertile islands.
As farmers, the nomadic lifestyle of the Mesolithic
had to cease as the raising of crops required permanent settlements
in areas of good soil. But despite the importance of agriculture,
the people of the Neolithic still relied on hunting and fishing
to survive.
The daily way of life of these early farmers
can be gleaned from the remains of their houses, burial places
and monuments,
as well as the less grand, but equally important, materials such
as pottery, tools and refuse.
Places such as the Knap
of Howar on Papay and Skara Brae on the western shores of the Orkney
Mainland give clear insights into the domestic lives of the
farming communities. At the Knap of Howar, for example, the bones
of domesticated cattle, sheep and pigs were found alongside those
of wild deer, whales and seals.
Their tradition of burials within chambered
cairns such as Cuween,
Wideford and Quanterness
also gives tantalising glimpses of these early Orcadians, their
beliefs and customs.
Cairns were an
essential part of life to the early farmers with the remains of men, women and
children - but not all - placed within the chambered tombs they erected
throughout Orkney.
Over the years it seems the small farming communities gradually
developed into larger units - communities that were capable of
constructing the major monuments such as Maeshowe and the
Ring of Brodgar.
From around 3500BC the "heartland" of
the Orkney Mainland - the area surrounding the lochs of Stenness
and Harray - appears to have become a ceremonial meeting place, a role it maintained for millennia. |