#jarlshof

[thesilicontribesman]

Early Medieval Decorated Bone Handles, Gurness and Jarlshof, National Museums Scotland, Edinburgh

[dknuth]

Last Update from Shetland

I skipped a couple of days on the tour. The first day, I woke up with serious sinus congestion and realized I had not refilled my supply of pseudoephedrine after the last trip. With a bad sinus headache and no exciting itinerary for the day, I decided to skip it. That night I learned that another person on the trip had tested positive for COVID. The next morning I got a COVID test kit, and I was positive too. By that point, it wasn't a surprise, but it hadn't occurred to me earlier. So, I skipped that day, too.

By that night we had six people knowing they had COVID.

The next morning was our last day on Shetland, and we were catching the ferry that night, so we really needed to go. They put us in a separate van from the rest of the group, and we all wore masks. By this time, I was feeling pretty good again.

The major stop for the day was Jarlshof on the extreme south end of Shetland. Jarlshof was continuously occupied for over 4,500 years, from the Neolithic through the Vikings and to the Middle Ages, so all the buildings of all ages were there beside and on top of one another.

It's amazing to me that in this part of the world, the basic building design has stayed the same for over 4,000 years. They went from ovalish buildings to round buildings and changed the interior dividers, but the only real innovation was the incorporation of corbelled roofs over the partitioned parts of the circle.

The Orkneys, especially, were very developed at 3,200 B.C., but they fell further and further behind after that. Maybe it was due to isolation or the lack of bronze ores, but when the Vikings came around 850 AD, the locals must have looked primitive to them. There were iron deposits, and the technology to smelt iron made it to the islands, but it doesn't seem to have had a huge impact that is visible now.

There are basic Neolithic buildings, with only the outline remaining.

Roundhouses with simple dividers.

Wheelhouses with rounded interior spaces with corbeled roofs.

The remains of a broch mostly disassembled and remodeled, and extra stones reused for other buildings. There are Viking longhouses.

And a medieval Earl's house.

Why was this spot used for so long? It was on the coast in a protected bay with good fishing and shellfish, good farmland, and freshwater, and on the south end, closest to the Orkney islands.

In fact, there is a newer large house that is now a hotel next door.

Then it was to Lerwick, where we had time in the local museum and to wander around. Some people went to see locations from the TV series, Shetland. I went to the High Street, named Commercial, although no one called it that; it was just the High Street, except on the maps where it was Commercial. There I found a cafe/bar serving local mussels, FINALLY! They were excellent!!! Then I stopped in the bookstore and got one of the Ann Cleves books that were the basis for the Shetland series. I got Red Bones since it features an archeologist and a dig site!

Then it was to the overnight ferry to Dundee.

In the first part of the trip, it was 20 mph north winds with 40 mph gusts and 2 meter plus waves. So the boat was rolling a bit. I skipped dinner, a good call. My preferred place on a boat in weather like this is outside in the fresh air with eyes fixed on the horizon, but there aren't a lot of good such places like that on these ferrys, so I spent the evening in my cabin. I was fine lying down, but just a walk across the room was enough to make me lose what little I had eaten.

But after that, I was fine and slept through, except for the stop in Kirkwall at 11 PM with the lifts and chains. I doubt anyone slept through that. After that, the wind may have died down; I don't know. I slept until we were pulling into Dundee.

Once I solid ground I I grabbed some coffee in a local shop and caught the 8:23 train towards Buckie where I'm spending the night.

I know this probably is more photos of the countryside than I showed in Shetland, but the train windows were cleaner than the ones on the bus, and it was easier to move around.

Buckie is a pleasant little Scottish town on the north coast.

Tomorrow I start my solo Speyside walk! I'm looking forward to that.

[youneedone2]

Jarlshof | Viking remains Shetland GB

[kiteknots]

Wheel house // Jarlshof

[on-misty-mountains]

Jarlshof, Shetland

This site is quite special due to the fact that it has been occupied for over 4000 years and still retains remnants and features from each period, starting with the Early Bronze Age, 2500 BC. There is an Iron Age broch, part of which has been washed away by the sea. There are wheelhouses, which are unique to the Northern and Western Isles of Scotland. Inside, wooden beams have been replaced with stone due to the lack of timber on Shetland, which gives them their unique character. There are Viking farm houses from the 9th Century well into the Middle Ages, when settlers from Norway would come in large numbers to Shetland. And then there’s the ‘Laird’s House’, dating from the 17th Century, built by the Earl of Shetland and Orkney, after Shetland had fallen into Scottish hands. Interestingly, just as with Skara Brae on Orkney, the site was discovered by the land owner after a heavy storm, who then excavated it. Today, it is maintained by Historic Environment Scotland. The name Jarlshof itself comes from the novel ‘The Pirate’ (1822) by Sir Walter Scott, who wrote it after visiting the ruins, which were then known as ‘Sumburgh House’. A must see if you’re visiting Shetland!

A tour of Jarlshof is up on my channel!

[ukdamo]

Today’s Flickr photo with the most hits shows the archaeological site of Jarlshof, Sumburgh, Shetland and the Pictish houses excavated as part of the exploration of the site’s occupation over the past 4000 years. 

[kochamchleb]

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[crisscrosscutout]

I hadn’t ever seen a Shetland pony foal, and now I’ve seen a lot and they are precious--

Look at that little fluff ;A;