Thing Sites: Tingwall, Orkney Traditional Cache
Thing Sites: Tingwall, Orkney
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Difficulty:
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Size: 
(small)
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A small lock'n'lock box capable of containing logbook, pencil and small swappable items.
Thing sites, from the Old Norse Þing, are the early assemblies found throughout Northern Europe as a result of our shared Norse heritage.
When the Vikings and early Norse settlers arrived in a new place they brought with them their customs and legal systems. Political decisions were made at the thing, laws upheld and disputes settled. Proceedings were overseen by the local ruler and the law-speaker (judge), whose job was to memorise and recite the law. At some things, known as Althings, any free man was entitled to vote. At others - Lawthings - the crown and local communities acted together to interpret the law.
The thing was also a focus for religious activity, as well as trade and exchange. At Thingvellir in Iceland you can still see the remains of the booths, or huts, where traders came to do business with people attending the meeting.
The thing system for sharing and legislating power can still be recognised today. Several things continue to be active. The Icelandic parliament is still known as the Althing, the Norwegian parliament is called the Storting and the Faroese parliament goes by the name of Løgting. The Manx parliament, known as Tynwald, still holds a midsummer court on the thing mound at Tynwald Hill every year.
There are Thing Sites caches in and around the locations of Norse and Viking assembly sites in Norway, Iceland, The Faroe Islands, Orkney, Shetland, Highland Scotland, and the Isle of Man. Follow in the footsteps of the Vikings, and explore some of these fascinating sites.
The Thing Sites: Tingwall, Orkney geocache is situated near to the Thing at Tingwall. Tingwall is in the west mainland of Orkney on the border between the parishes of Rendall and Evie. Orkney’s other known thing site is at Dingieshowe in the East Mainland and it lies on the border of the parishes of Deerness and St Andrews and perhaps the choice of both sites signifies places of neutrality, betwixt and between the communities to which they related.
The Vikings probably used the grassy ruins of a broch (a circular, tower-like structure dating to the Iron Age) as a thing site. A large green mound with a stepped profile is still visible today, next to the road to the ferry terminal. It is strategically placed to take in views of Rousay, Wyre and Egilsay, once home to the 12th century Viking pirate Sweyn Asleifsson. The Orkneyinga Saga tells us that Sweyn’s uncle, Helgi, lived at Tingwall, and it is believed that this may have been the location of some of the meetings mentioned in the saga.
The cache is easily accessed from the road. Park at the Tingwall Ferry Terminal to start your search. The cache itself looks directly into the field where the thing site mound is situated. The field itself is used for livestock so keep out. Please be wary of traffic when seeking this cache.
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
Ng gur whapgvba jvgu gur cbfg obk - gur pnpur arfgyrf ntnvafg gur obggbz bs gur jnyy va yvar jvgu gur juvgr 'fgbc' yvar ba gur ebnq.