Thur, May 22
We wake this morning to bright sun, a milder temperature and we’re in great spirits. Today we are going to visit two of the three most important west Mainland neolithic sites, the Stones of Stenness and the Ring of Brodgar, and reserve a place for ourselves tomorrow at the third, Maes Howe. The two stone circles occupy important sites on the narrow neck of land that separates the salty Loch of Stenness and the freshwater Loch of Harray, lakes that account for a large area of central Mainland.
Off we go, first to the Stones of Stenness, probably the oldest of the many archaeological sites on the Brodgar peninsula, having been carbon-dated to about 3100 BCE. It was built as a henge, which is to say, a level, circular platform surrounded by a ditch with an external bank. The henge here was more than six feet deep and about 22 feet wide. It was later that holes were dug for the placement of 12 standing stones, the largest being 18 feet high. Only four stones remain upright today.
The weather in the meantime has made a most remarkable reversal; it is now much colder, the lowering sky promises rain–or sleet maybe?–the wind is biting. But these massive stones with their angled tops convey such a foreboding, mysterious presence that the cold is almost forgotten.
A brief word about the high hills of Hoy. Generally speaking the Orkney islands are not hilly, but Hoy which lies just south of Mainland has two moderately high hills at its northern end, Ward and Cuilags. Seen from Mainland the slopes of these two hills form a V and it is the orientation of the sunset between the hills in the weeks around the winter solstice, the placement of the stones at Stenness and Brodgar and the entrance of Maes Howe that suggests the sophistication of these stone-age people. We will probably never know what their religious beliefs were but it is fascinating to theorize the possible uses for which these structures were built. The Stones of Stenness are a very popular motif for Island artists.
When we leave the stones we try to locate the Ness of Brodgar which we know is nearby and which we have been told is either open and accessible for anyone wishing to see it or, conversely, will not be open at all until later in the summer when excavations will again begin. It was only discovered 12 years ago. In any case, the only possible site we find is a large mound totally encircled by fencing and covered with turf and some sort of mesh visible in spots. Can this be the Ness? Or a part of it? How tantalizing! It seems to be in the right location, somewhere midway between the Stones of Stenness and the Ring of Brodgar. The guide book makes this 5000 plus year old site a cogent argument for a return trip!
We push on to the Ring of Brodgar, probably the most familiar landscape in all of Orkney. The Ring is about 310 feet in diameter and the circle is perfect. It too is a henge with a ditch and outer bank. Of the original 60 stones, 27 stand today.
It is nearly impossible to photograph in its entirety except from the air. It sits atop a slight knoll in a huge field of heather, just barely beginning to green up a bit, with a long view down over the Loch of Stenness toward Hoy. In the photo you can just make out the V of those two hills.
Again the sense of endless time pervades the site: people mined, transported and dressed these massive stones and placed them around this henge in a perfect circle. What did they know of geometry? Wasn’t that Euclid, a long time later? How did they do it?
I haven’t felt this touched by the enormity of time since my first visit to Stonehenge more than 50 years ago–before all the fences and gates, the tunnels and parking lots, the swarms of tourists milling around the visitor centre and once, horribly, graffiti. It was midnight then and a nearly full moon and just my mother and me.
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Michael, Lynn and Jill suited up for a spring day in Orkney
We eat our sandwiches, surely a different riff on the BLT theme by now, and then drive northeast to the Broch of Gurness. This is also a very impressive site, though practically modern by comparison, a scant 2000 years old or so. This site with its ditches, walls, broch tower and ruins of the community’s buildings, perhaps about 30 families, arrayed around the broch was occupied from the Iron Age to Pictish times to the Norse era about 800 CE. At the same site there is a rebuilt Pictish settlement.It is in the shape of a shamrock with rounded rooms radiating off from the main hearth area. Here’s a shot from one of my guide books showing the site from the air.
In the visitor centre I buy a new copy of Orkneyinga Saga and a book of short stories by the best known Orcadian author George Mackay Brown.
We make another foray into Kirkwall for another round of shopping–Michael buys a beautiful North Ronaldsay sheep fleece, Lynn a ring, T shirts and a biking jersey and Jill found several items for Nicky, Fayley and Gussy. I’m sure I bought something too. Perhaps my second ring from Alison Moore!
Back at the cottage it’s Michael’s turn to make dinner and here it is:
Michael’s Cozy Chicken
Ingredients
2 Tbl olive oil
1 or 2 onions, diced
1 or 2 bell peppers, diced
1 1/2 lb skinless, boneless chicken thighs
6 plum tomatoes, diced
2 Tbl tomato paste
1/4 c worcestershire sauce
2 tsp fresh thyme, salt, pepper
1 1/2 c water
10 oz fresh or frozen corn
10 oz baby lima beans
1 lemon
Heat oil in a heavy pot or dutch oven. Add onions, peppers, salt and cook until onions are translucent
Place chicken on top and add tomatoes, tomato paste, salt, pepper, thyme, worcestershire sauce and water and bring to a boil.
Simmer 15 minutes, covered. Remove chicken to a plate and add to the pot the beans and corn and continue to cook, about 15 minutes.
While the above is cooking, shred the chicken, then return it to the pot, add the juice of 1 lemon and serve.
Note: other vegetables may be substituted and fresh basil is good sprinkled at the end.
We had this wonderfully moist and delicious chicken with Tesco’s version of Trader Joe’s Two Buck Chuck. This one was Vino Rosso Italiano, bottled by CVSC of Ortona, Italia.
Do we let what we eat dictate the color of the wine? Of course not! What a tired canard that is!
When Jill, Lynn and I cook we try to limit the number of utensils dirtied in the meal’s preparation. Not so with our Michael!!
