Culture & History I

Mae Yuen
Dec 6, 2016
6 min read

Module Outline August 2016

Project 1 : WIKI Times Online Discussion Forum

i) Who is the architect or founder of Skara Brae?

As it is a prehistoric building, the architect of the settlement was yet to be recorded, probably due to absence of formal language and written knowledge. The villagers of Skara Brae led a comfortable life under Neolithic standards with assumingly, their entire family in one room or 'house'.

They were settled farmers and independent in sustaining their lives on their own. The villagers would probably interact with other villages outside the settlement to trade for other goods such as clay and pottery. Heaps of bones found around the settlement suggests that sheep and cattle were a huge part of their diet. They grow wheat and barley around the fields outside the settlement. Fish and shellfish were also stashed for consumption and kept fresh in custom tanks that were built in the settlement.

A large amount of limpets were gathered but not for consumption, but as bait. The red deer, bear, birds' eggs and if fortunate enough, a beached whale would be hunted or collected to be eaten for sustenance. The villagers also used the bones and skin from these hunted animals as tools needed for their daily activities. For example, their bones could be used as needles, knives or as shovels. It was suggested that animal skin was the core material for clothing. However, there were no tools found at the settlement that suggested the manufacturing of textiles existed.

ii) What was the concept or the philosophy of the architect or founder that makes the building historically significant / meaningful?

There are a total of 8 houses in Skara Brae. Most of it standardized in the arrangement of furniture with low doorways. This uniformed arrangement may have been symbolically important to the villagers back then. It was also suggested by V.Gordon Childe that the uniformed pattern and structure of each house was to show equality in status of the villagers, where no family or villager is superior than the other.

Although each room were architecturally similar, there were two houses with different interiors and assumingly, played a different role than a space for living.

House 7 was noted as the only house standing on natural sand, which shows that this was probably the oldest house among the others and one of the first structures experimented by the villagers. It had rounder walls compared to the closely rectangular shapes of the other houses. There is a side passage that only leads to House 7 and is seen to be 'detached' from the rest. In previous excavations, the bodies of two women were found on the bed of the right side and a stone cist with carvings were found. Another sign that showed House 7 wasn't a place to dwell about was that the door could only be bolted from the outside. Whoever that was in House 7 has no physical control in that house. This house could have been used as a place for spiritual rituals or served as a dungeon to lock up people. The reason for this is also speculative, whether it was used to jail up lawbreakers, for child-birth or a place for rituals.

Another house in Skara Brae was also different from the rest and it was named House 8. House 8 was built on an open paved area instead of being 'sunken' with midden. The interior was also different. Instead of a stone bed, it had a compartment. The walls were greatly decorated with carving patterns. Then in the 1920s, excavators found huge amounts of debris and chert from the making of tools. It was then concluded that with the larger amount of storage space in House 8, it was a workshop to make tools.

House 8

In conclusion with my findings, I believe that the villagers built this settlement on a concept of sustenance within their compound. They also have a mutual understanding that everyone is equal, with no superior power over each other. They must have worked together to gather crops and food for consumption and assigned to a workshop to make their everyday tools. They also understood the concept of responsibility and the niche system as there was a house specifically for tool making.

i) Where and when was the building built?

Skara Brae is a Neolithic settlement on the Southern Shore of West Mainland, Orkney, Scotland. Excavators have dated it back to 3180 BC when the villagers started occupying the settlement and they continued to do so for another 600 years before abandoning it. It was speculated that the villagers abandoned it in a rush due to the build of sand from a big storm into the settlement. However, this was proven false as the build of sand was gradual, so there was no need for the villagers to abandon the village urgently.

ii) How the context, building period and evolution makes the building historically significant and meaningful?

This building is historically significant and meaningful due to the geography, structure and its interior.

For its geographical location, it is located at the beach side, which explains the villagers being fishermen in the past with plentiful of bones from fishes and other sea creatures. It is noted that the settlement was built with stones, which is how it would have lasted for 40 centuries (as wood or other common prehistoric building materials would have been expendable). Another reason for the villagers to use stone was because of the lack of source of timber in its surrounding. Hence, they used resources available around them and stone being the strongest material available for the settlement. The settlement lacked roofs upon discovery. Gordon Childe suggested that it was made of perishable material such as hay or animal bones. It is seen here that prehistoric human being had the capability of rational and creative thinking in building a sustainable home.

Structural wise, it was built on midden. Midden is a heap of prehistoric domestic waste. It is commonly thought that the village 'sunk' into the ground but actually it was built on midden and purposely done this way to combat the extremely cold climate. With the fire at the hearth, it also keeps them warm. I think that the roof was made of perishable material like bones because it is porous. It allows the smoke from the fire burning indoors to escape the room.Therefore, the room would be breathable and less smoky. They have utilised their natural surroundings and improvised on their domestic waste to provide heat instead.

Although the passage walls seem short, anyone passing through it doesn't necessarily have to bend their body. There are roofs above it, allowing space for the rest of the abdomen hence you can walk upright through the winding passages. Some archaeologists suggests that the winding fashion has some safety characteristics to the settlement, as they walk down the passage their presence is easily spotted. It reduces the likelihood of intruders. Once again, this 'sunken' characteristic has dual usages, one as a safety purpose and the other to keep them warm.

The interiors are somewhat interesting, as excavators have found there have been amendments made to the houses. They probably did it over the centuries to improve their dwellings, or as a significant symbol to their settlement. It is shown when House 7 was built on natural sand and had rounder walls while the other houses were built on top of remaining structures. The other houses also show more of a rectangular shaped with round corners. To enter the house, you will have to go through a low doorway. It was purposely made low probably for safety reasons. As you enter, you will be able to see the entire room with the hearth in the middle. A huge slab of stone is placed on the left, which forces your path towards the right side. Across the door, there is another huge stone with a height almost certain enough that acts as a seat. It is assumed that the leader of the family would sit on that stone and as you enter you will be greeted by a fire in the hearth and the leader. It might have been some sort of significance for the villagers. In the room, there are beds but the right side is bigger. Men probably slept on the beds on the right side while women slept on the other.

How does all this make this settlement historically significant? It is the cleverness of the villagers to use natural resources to build a sturdy home while using the natural ground to protect themselves against the cold climate. The winding passage ways and low doorways are not the best but certainly clever safety features installed. It is seen that they do not settle with their homes, they are constantly trying to improve their quality of life which is proven by the alterations made in other houses compared to the earliest site, House 7.

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