KNOWE OF SWANDRO, ROUSAY
Archaeologists are racing against time and tide to excavate the Knowe of Swandro in Rousay, an amazing site comprising a 5,000-year-old Neolithic chambered tomb and overlying multi-period settlement, all of which is being destroyed by coastal erosion.
Sadly, the 2020 excavation had to be cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and the international excavation team, led by archaeologists from the University of Bradford, is desperate to return to Rousay in 2021 to resume work. Only once the protective covering has been removed will we be able to assess how much damage has been done to the site in the intervening period.
The 2021 excavation will, COVID-19 permitting, concentrate on the massive Early Iron Age roundhouse, 20 metres in diameter, which radiocarbon dating shows was built between the 8th – 4th centuries BC. This roundhouse was at the centre of an important site, with evidence of skilled copper and iron metalworking, together with high-status imported goods such as Roman glass. In addition to cattle, sheep and pigs, the Iron Age inhabitants also kept horses — unusual in this period in the Northern Isles, and another indication of the importance of the site. In addition to horse bones, a piece of carved antler has been identified as an unfinished cheekpiece from an Iron Age bridle. Other unusual finds include a large number of bones from birds of prey, including the white-tailed sea eagle. Geophysical surveys, conducted in 2019 by Dr Chris Gaffney of the University of Bradford and Time Team fame, suggest that the Iron Age roundhouse was surrounded by a substantial ditch, further emphasising the importance of the settlement.
The roundhouse was modified over the centuries, with subdivisions inside the roundhouse, and more buildings against the outside walls, creating a much larger settlement which continued in use into the 1st millennium AD, with both Pictish and Viking occupation.
Finally a Norse Long Hall, excavated in the 1960s and still partly visible on site, was constructed against the edge of the earlier settlement mound, using stone taken from the earlier buildings.
Swandro is just a short walk around the bay from the rich Pictish and Viking burial ground at Moaness, found by chance in 1963, by a farmer burying a dead cow. The spectacular finds from this cemetery included the Westness brooch (on display in the National Museums Scotland), and over 45 burials, including two boat burials containing Viking warriors with weapons and shields, who appeared to have been killed in battle. It seems likely that the wealthy people buried at this cemetery lived at the buildings now being uncovered at the Knowe of Swandro. We know that in 1136/7 Swandro was part of a large estate belonging to a chieftain called Sigurd of Westness, which features in the Orkneyinga Saga (Orkney’s very own Norse Saga) as the possible site of Earl Paul Hakonarson’s kidnapping by the notorious adventurer Sveinn Asleifarson.
Visitors to the dig are very welcome, with free site tours and special events and, although at the time of writing, our 2021 excavation dates are not yet confirmed, these will be published on our website www.swandro.co.uk, where you can find also more information about the site and finds so far.
The excavation at Swandro is supported by our registered charity, the Swandro-Orkney Coastal Archaeology Trust, from public donations and grants (acknowledged on our website). We are also grateful for support from the University of Bradford, Historic Environment Scotland and the Orkney Islands Council.