The story of a place
A prehistoric landscape whose monuments remain closely connected.
Orkney's Neolithic sites reward seeing them as a group. Skara Brae's houses, the great stone circles and Maeshowe's chamber offer different windows into a sophisticated prehistoric society.
The island setting matters, with coast, farmland and long northern light connecting the monuments. Give separate sites enough time rather than reducing them to a single rapid coach circuit.
The essential experience
Make time for this.
Combine a carefully timed chamber or settlement visit with an unhurried walk around a stone circle.
Explore the highlights
Look a little closer.
Orkney’s standing stones and chambered tombs belong to one connected prehistoric landscape.
Domestic fittings
Notice the organisation of Skara Brae's interiors.
Stone spacing
Consider how circles occupy their surroundings.
Chamber construction
Look at the engineering of enclosed stone spaces.
For the curious reader
History, landscape
and context.
Heart of Neolithic Orkney is a group of Neolithic monuments on the Mainland of the Orkney Islands, Scotland. The name was adopted by UNESCO when it proclaimed these sites as a World Heritage Site on 2 December 1999. Ness of Brodgar is an archaeological site between the Ring of Brodgar and the Stones of Stenness that has provided evidence of housing, decorated stone slabs, a massive stone wall with foundations, and a large building described as a Neolithic "cathedral". Although it is not part of the World Heritage Site, the Ness of Brodgar "contribute[s] greatly to our understanding of the WHS" according to Historic Scotland, which manages most of the site.
Background reading: an abridged extract from Heart of Neolithic Orkney, by Wikipedia contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0. Paragraphs have been selected and shortened for this guide. Retrieved 22 September 2026. Source revision ↗.
Turn curiosity into a visit
Plan your visit.
- Physical demands
- Uneven ground and exposed conditions; some interiors are confined.
- The practical detail
- Maeshowe, Skara Brae and the circles have different access arrangements.
Before you set off.
Your ticks stay in this browser.Through the seasons
A place in the world
Find your bearings.
Select the pin to open a detailed map. Use Closer look to see the surrounding region. Drag to move a zoomed map.
Map: Natural EarthA closer view.
Load the local map to explore the surrounding area. Map tiles require an internet connection.
- 1Neolithic OrkneyOpen directions ↗ · Location reference ↗
A sense of place
In pictures.
Keep looking.
10 photographs, with full-size views and individual credits.
Go a little further
Sources & further reading.
The UNESCO link names the specific inscribed property. A broad entry in this project can extend beyond that property’s boundaries.
