Unchambered long cairn

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Unchambered long cairns (sometimes also chamberless long cairns) are found in Scotland and Northern England and form a group of non- or semi-megalithic monuments that are, nevertheless, considered part of British megalith architecture. There are about 28 long cairns in north Scotland and 21 in south Scotland that show no evidence of internal stone chambers. However, proving the existence of wooden chambers under a cairn is not possible without excavation work. The exact classification of this group of monuments is therefore not easy. Three particularly noteworthy examples of these cairns are:

Dalladies in Kincardineshire, with cup and ring marks
Slewcairn in Wigtownshire.
Lochhill in Kirkcudbrightshire.

All have narrow rectangular chambers whose positions are marked by wooden posts. The last two are especially interesting, because stone chambers were built into the mound at a later date. These make the connexions and overlaps of ideas clearly visible, something which can otherwise only be imagined from their classification by type.

Although none of the northern cairns has been excavated, their existence is significant for the architectural history of Scotland. The north is a region where passage tombs in circular cairns are especially common (the Orkney-Cromarty type). Sites that span several periods of time, such as Tulach an t'Sionnaich, demonstrate that both forms were used by the same communities. Several round cairns, like those of Camster had long cairns built over them, so that the round mound here retains its older shape. Many chamberless cairns and those with stone chambers have concave forecourts which are reminiscent of those that had been built earlier of wood (Haddenham and Street House) in Yorkshire.

Literature

Frances Lynch: Megalithic Tombs and Long Barrows in Britain. Shire Publications Ltd. 1997 ISBN 0-7478-0341-2.

Prehistoric technology

Architectural

Ceremonial structures	Earliest religious structure Kiva Pyramid Temple

Dwellings	Neolithic architecture British megalith architecture Nordic megalith architecture Burdei Cave Cliff dwelling Dugout Great house Hut Jacal Lean-to Longhouse Neolithic long house Pit-house Pueblitos Pueblo Rock shelter Roundhouse Stilt house Tent

Water management	Check dam Cistern Reservoir Water well

Other	Archaeological features Burnt mound Causewayed enclosure Henge Mead hall Megalithic architectural elements Midden Timber trackway

Tools

Farming	Neolithic Revolution Ard / plough Celt Digging stick Domestication Goad Irrigation Sickle Terracing

Food processing	Fire Basket Granaries Grinding slab Ground stone Hearth Manos Metate Mortar and pestle Pottery Quern-stone Storage pit

Hunting	Arrow Atlatl Bow and arrow Dart Projectile point Snare trap Spear

Toolmaking	Earliest toolmaking Biface Cupstone Hafting Hand axe Lithic core Lithic reduction Prepared-core technique Striking platform Tool stone

Other tools	Adze Awl Axe Blade Bone tool Bow drill Burin Chopper Cleaver Denticulate tool Fire plough Fire-saw Hammerstone Hand axe Knife Quern-stone Rope Scraper Stone tool Weapons Wheel Ancient maritime history

Arts and culture

Material goods	Basket weaving Beadwork Chalcolithic Clothing Clothing and textiles Hides Pottery Weaving

Prehistoric art	Earliest art Cairn Cave painting Cup and ring mark Geoglyph Guardian stone Ideograms List of prehistoric artworks Megalithic art Petroform Petroglyph Petrosomatoglyph Pictogram Rock art Stone circle

Burial	Burial mounds Chamber tomb Cist Dolmen Great dolmen Jar burial Long barrow Passage grave Funeral pyre Megalithic tomb Mummy Rectangular dolmen Ring cairn Simple dolmen Stone box grave Tor cairn Tumulus Unchambered long barrow Unchambered long cairn

Other cultural	Behavioral modernity Evolutionary origin of religions Music archaeology Prehistoric music

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike; additional terms may apply for the media files.

Unchambered long cairn

See also

Literature