Ring o’ Brodgar Photos of The Stone Circles Hidden Secret

The Ring o’ Brodgar stone circle is located on windswept heather moorland between two lochs on the Isle of Orkney. It is a big circles at 104 metres (341 ft) in diameter with 60 stones left standing. Probably its most incredible feature is its henge (ditch) which is so full of peat and heather that at times it is almost invisible. The henge at the Ring o’ Brodgar is not a true henge as it is a ditch without any bank, true henges have a bank as well. 

Ring o’ Brodgar Henge

The henge probably predates the standing stone circle and is cut into the underlying sandstone rock, and is an incredible 3 metres (9.8 ft) deep, 9 metres (30 ft) wide and 380 metres (1,250 ft). The man hours to cut such a big ditch with only stone tools out of solid rock are un-imaginable. There is evidence that the ditch was cut in sections by different groups. This indicates that not only were the people of Orkney settled farmers and fishermen who had spare time to undertake the work at Brodgar, but also that their community was organised as a collective that could work together on projects. 

Standing Stone - Colour art photo wall print of Ring O Brodgar Orkney No1, Orkney, Scotland at sunset Photo by Paul E Williams

Standing Stone - Colour art photo wall print of Ring O Brodgar Orkney No4, Orkney, Scotland at sunset Photo by Paul E Williams

Standing Stone - Colour art photo wall print of Ring O Brodgar Orkney No3, Orkney, Scotland at sunset Photo by Paul E Williams

Standing Stone - Colour art photo wall print of Ring O Brodgar Orkney No5, Orkney, Scotland at sunset Photo by Paul E Williams

Standing Stone - Photo of the Ring of Brodgar Neolithic stone circle and henge, Orkney, Scotland by Paul E Williams

Ring o’ Brodgar Layout

The way the Ring o Brodgar was built and organised indicates that different sections of the Ring of Brodgar were the prerogative of particular social groups, (according to A. Jones 2005). Not only was the ditch dug by different groups but the stones can be traced to different quarries on the island. The stones are arranged in groups from the same quarry, suggesting that each section of Brodgar belonged to a different clan from the island.

 Ring o’ Brodgar Uses

This opens up new possibilities for the uses of the Ring o’ Brodgar and other stone circles. It could have been a meeting place where the different clans gathered to discuss and make collective plans and settle differences. It could have been an early parliament which stabilised the social structure of the island. Of course we can never know, but one thing is for sure, the Ring o’ Brodgar was of great importance to the people of Orkney for them to put so much work into building it. 

References & Further Reading

See more MuseoPics Ring o’ Brodgar Photos

See the archaeology diary of the re-excavation of the Ring o’ Brodgar ditch in 2008, it gives a clear picture of its original size.

Investigating the Ring o’ Brodgar by Downes Richards