At Burwick, near Stromness, in Orkney, a Broch situated on a rugged promontory rising to a considerable height above the sea has been recently explored by Mr. W. G. T. Watt. The external appearance of the ruin previous to its excavation was that of a circular mound about 15 to 20 feet in height occupying the whole width of the promontory and sloping to the crag on both sides. On the landward side, about 50 feet from the exterior margin of the base of the mound, there is a deep and wide ditch across the neck of the promontory isolating the part on which the tower stands from the mainland. The ditch is 160 feet long and about 40 feet wide, and is faced on the inner side by a well-built wall 9 feet high, 6 feet thick at the bottom, and sloping to from 3 to 4 feet at the top. The Broch itself consists of the usual circular wall, averaging from 12 to 13 feet in thickness. No part of the wall now exceeds 16 feet in height. The entrance to the interior area of the Broch is 5 feet 2 inches high, 3 feet 5 inches wide at the bottom and 3 feet 1 inch at the top. The passage through the wall is paved in the bottom and
Fig. 211.—Polished Bone Pin from Broch of Burwick. (Actual size.) diminishes slightly in width and height until at the distance of 9 feet 9 inches inwards, where there are checks for a door, the opening of the doorway is only 4 feet 6 inches high and 2 feet 11 inches wide. Inside this doorway the passage widens by 12 inches on either side, and on the right side there is a guard-chamber entering by a doorway 3 feet 5 inches high and 2 feet wide, lighted by an opening above the lintel of about 1 foot square. The chamber seems to have been about 12 feet long and has been roofed in the usual manner by overlapping stones. The interior area was occupied by secondary constructions founded at a height of 3 feet above the original floor-level upon a bed of stones and rubbish which had accumulated to that depth upon the original floor previous to the time of this secondary occupation. The area within the Broch wall, which had been originally 24 feet in diameter, was diminished to 16 feet in diameter by a roughly-constructed circular wall or “scarcement” built against the inner wall of the Broch, rising to the height of about 6 feet. Unlike many of these “scarcements,” it presents great inequality in thickness, varying from about 7 feet on one side of the area to about 2½ on the other. The area is further intersected in various directions by several partition walls of the same inferior character of masonry. The space outside the Broch wall, intervening between it and the ditch, is also occupied by secondary constructions, and an underground passage has been traced for about 50 feet towards the ditch.
Fig. 212.—Long-Handled Bone Comb from the Broch of Burwick (4½ inches in length).
Fig. 213.—Round-backed, single-edged Comb from Broch of Burwick.
The articles found during the excavation consisted of a number of stone pounders or hammer-stones, wasted at the ends by use, round flat stone discs of various sizes roughly chipped to shape, broken mortars or vessels of various sizes roughly hollowed in naturally-shaped boulders of sandstone (one being apparently a stone mould for an iron crusie), a considerable number of bone implements of various kinds, among which are several bone pins, one of which (Fig. 211) is flat at the point, has an ornamented head, and has been furnished with a loop for suspension at the side; a polished bone handle in which an instrument, apparently of iron, has been inserted; two spindle-whorls, one of bone and the other of stone; portions of deer-horns cut into slips and pierced by peg-holes; two long-handled combs made of deer-horn, one of which is here figured (Fig. 212); one double-edged comb of bone, and one single-edged comb with round back (Fig. [213]), both formed in several pieces,
Fig. 213.—Round-backed, single-edged Comb from Broch of Burwick. neatly joined and held together by transverse slips of bone fastened with rivets. The only iron object found was a portion of a cylindrical rod. The pottery was coarse, thick, unglazed, and unornamented, except one piece of dark-coloured ware resembling the black ware made in Roman kilns in several parts of England. The animal remains were chiefly those of the ox, the sheep or goat, the horse, the swine, and the red-deer.