Scotland is a mysterious and beautiful country with a fascinating past. Megaliths, stone circles, cairns, and castles are scattered over its rolling green hills. The Romans, Vikings, Celts, and many others have influenced its history, and have left their mark on the land. There is so much history to this great country, it would be wise to get travel insurance and go out and explore the remnants of this ancient country.
The Pictish
The Pictish people once ruled Scotland, and were descended from the Iron Age people who dwelt there. They were at the height of their power around 400AD. The Picts were reported to be fierce warriors who painted and tattooed their bodies, thus earning the name Pict, given to them by the Romans, which means ‘painted people.”
Scottish Cairns
The Scottish cairns are piles of stones erected as monuments to honor the deceased. They are usually cone-shaped and can be quite large. According to ancient tradition, new clan chiefs were inaugurated on the cairns of the recently deceased previous chief. The remains of many ancient cairns can still be seen today, scattered throughout Scotland.
Scottish Megaliths
Stonehenge is the most well-known megalith, but there are many more examples of these ancient monuments to be seen in Scotland. These monuments were built from large stones without the use of mortar. No one is certain why they were built, but they may have served as tombs or religious or astronomical sites.
Ancient Scottish Settlements
Scotland is known for historic sites and archaeological research. You can see examples of Neolithic, Bronze Age, and Iron Age settlements. Because stone was used extensively in building, particularly on the Western and Northern isles, many ancient homes, religious, and burial sites have been well preserved.
Ancient Scottish Art
Ancient Scottish art mainly consists of carvings on stones, the oldest examples being the hundreds of stone balls that have been found in Northeastern Scotland. Other stone carving are found on Pictish stones. The carvings were geometric and symmetrical in style and sometimes represented animals.
Scottish Castles
Castle began to dot the Scottish landscape soon after the invasion of the Norman conquerors in the 12th century. Many examples of this type of medieval architecture can still be seen today in Scotland, erected on rocky slopes, cliff edges, and near bodies of water.
Orkney
The Orkney Islands are a source of fascination for history lovers. There are ruins of settlements here that are over 5,000 years old, such as Skara Brea, ancient Viking ruins, stone monuments, like the Ring o’ Brodgar, castles, including Cubbie Roo’s castle and Notland castle, and ancient holy sites like St. Olaf’s Kirk.
Kilmartin
Kilmartin is a small village in Western Scotland that has a high concentration of prehistoric sites. There is Kilmartin Glen, which has a large collection of cairns, standing stones, and tombs from as early as the Neolithic period. The Kilmartin Church has an interesting collection of carved stones dating from the 9th century. There is also a castle and museum in Kilmartin for further exploration.
Western Isles
The Western Isles, also known as the Outer Hebrides, are located in the Northwestern most part of Scotland. Many ancient remnants are located on this group of islands. There are the standing stones of Calanais, prehistoric forts and roundhouses at Allathasdal and other sites , and, on the island of Barra, the Kismul Castle.
Clava
The Clava cairns are more properly known as the Prehistoric Burial Cairns of Balnuaran , and are located near the village of Culloden. This site contains three important burial cairns, surrounded by a ring of large boulders. Some of the rocks have interesting ring and cup style carvings.