Orkney archaeologists honoured for work uncovering ancient past of islands

Orkney’s archaeology never fails to stun now work uncovering the fascinating, ancient past of the islands has been honoured with three awards at a London ceremony.

The once-bustling ancient gathering place in Orkney that attracted visitors to the islands from all over Britain 5,000 years ago continues to stun with its scale and every evolving story.

The Ness of Brodgar, a huge Neolithic complex of monumental structures in the heart of the Orkney mainland that would have dominated the landscape at the time, has been the scene of excavations for the past 20 years with their findings continuing to alter the narrative of our ancestors and how they used to live.

Now, the excavations at the Ness of Brodgar have been named Research Project of the Year at the Current Archaeology Awards with project director, Nick Card, named Archaeologist of the Year.

The Ness of Brodgar in Orkney, a huge complex of monumental structures which have often defied explanation - and belief- given their scale. PIC: Tom O'Brien.

A second Orkney archaeology award was also honoured on the night with excavations at Swandro in Rousay, where there is evidence of both Pictish and Norse settlements, winning Rescue Project of the Year given its aim of gathering as much evidence as possible before rising tides and changing weather patterns destroy the archaeology for good.

Mr Card said: “We were up against extremely fine archaeologists and projects, so are both delighted and humbled by this recognition.

“To receive two awards is a great accolade to all the hard work that the Ness team has put into the project over the past 20 years and a fitting celebration to mark the end of two decades of excavation. Both, I feel, are for the whole team and thank you to everyone who voted and deemed us worthy of these awards.”

Both awards were collected on behalf of the Ness of Brodgar by Time Team stalwart and geophysicist John Gater, who was responsible for the initial phase of the geophysical surveys that detected its presence in 2003. Mr Gater has hailed the discovery as “the main highlight of his career”.

One structure on the site has been described as a giant Neolithic-era cathedral. At 82ft long and 65ft wide, it stands between two of Orkney's most famous Neolithic landmarks, the Ring of Brodgar and the Stones of Stenness.

The size, quality, and architecture of the structures, together with evidence for tiled roofs, coloured walls, decorated stone and stunning artefacts have seen the Ness hit headlines across the world regularly over the past two decades.

The awards come at a major turning point in the Ness of Brodgar story with this season’s fieldwork to be the last led by Mr Card and his team, with the site to be covered up and topped by a field to preserve it for future investigation.

The excavation has uncovered a complex of monumental Neolithic buildings, dating from around 3300BC to 2400BC and flanked by a pair of massive stone walls, has emerged.

Every summer, it attracts thousands of visitors to witness the archaeologists at work and the story of Orkney’s ancient past unfolding.

The Swandro excavations are led by the Swandro-Orkney Coastal Archaeology Trust and Dr Stephen Dockrill and Dr Julie Bond of the University of Bradford, who have spent almost 30 years investigating the ever-fragile site.