Description

The monument is a burial mound dating probably to the Bronze Age (between 2000 and 800 BC). It is visible as a prominent grass-covered mound measuring 16m NW-SE by 11m transversely and standing up to 1.4m in height, which sits on a wider platform measuring approximately 24m NW-SE by 18m E-W in total. The mound is roughly oval in shape, with a slight tail to the NW. The platform has been eroded on the W side, but extends up to 6m beyond the mound on the E side. The mound is situated on the cliff edge on the W coast of the island of Auskerry at around 10m above sea level, overlooking a rocky cove to the SW. The monument was first scheduled in 1975, but the documentation did not meet modern standards: the present amendment rectifies this.

The scheduled area is irregular in plan to include the remains described above and an area around them within which evidence relating to the monument's construction, use and abandonment is expected to survive, as shown in red on the accompanying map. On its N edge, the scheduled area extends up to but does not include the modern post-and-wire fence.

Source: Historic Environment Scotland

Statement of Scheduling

The monument is of national importance because of its potential to make a significant addition to our understanding of funerary practice in the Bronze Age. Burial mounds form an important and relatively widespread element of Orkney's Bronze Age landscape, and provide evidence for the major social and economic changes which took place during this period. The mound is well-preserved and appears undisturbed, retaining much of its original form. There is a high likelihood that significant archaeological deposits lie buried within the mound. The monument retains a prominent position within the surrounding landscape of Auskerry, an island rich in prehistoric sites. The mound's significance is enhanced by its potential relationship with broadly contemporary sites nearby, including an alignment of three standing stones. The loss of the monument would diminish our ability to appreciate and understand the significance and placing of such monuments within the landscape and prehistoric society's beliefs relating to death and burial.

Source: Historic Environment Scotland

Sources

Bibliography

RCAHMS records the site as HY61NE 6.

[Note: There is a discrepancy between Mastermap and the aerial photograph for this site, as can be seen from the fence lines which do not coincide on the map and photograph. The scheduled area has been extended to ensure the whole mound is included.]

References

Downes, J 1995, 'Linga Fold', Current Archaeology 142, 396-399.

RCAHMS, 1984, The Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland. The archaeological sites and monuments of Eday and Stronsay, Orkney Islands Area, The archaeological sites and monuments of Scotland series no 23, Edinburgh, 36, no 204.

Source: Historic Environment Scotland