Corrimony Cairn - Corrimony, Scotland - UK Historical Markers on Waymarking.com

The marker reads:

"This monument was built about four thousand years ago and its remains are remarkably well preserved.

It is a kind of chambered tomb known as a 'passage grave'. The term is appropriate as the main features of the original monument would have been a high central chamber which was completely roofed over, and a low passage communicating with the outside world. Originally the cairn was bounded by a ring of kerbstones but these seem to have been buried as the structure collapsed.

The chamber was originally a domed or corbelled structure in which successive courses of walling sloped inwards towards the centre.

It was probably topped with a large stone slab whose remains can be found on top of the cairn today. This slab was decorated with a series of abstract designs known as 'cup marks'. Unusually, part of the passage still remains intact. It was spanned by large stone lintels and you can only enter it by crawling. Excavation in the 1950s suggested that the chamber contained just one burial, probably that of a woman. When the use of the tomb was over, a low wall was built to block the passage and the entire cairn was enclosed by a stone circle.

Passage graves like Corrimony are found around the inner Moray Firth. They may occur singly or in larger cemeteries together with monuments of others kinds (as may be the case here). They are known as 'Clava cairns' after the well-preserved examples at Blanuaran of Clava near Culloden. These are open to visitors."

Type of Historic Marker: Information board about the nearby Corrimony Cairn Historical Marker Issuing Authority: Historic Scotland Related Website: [Web Link] Give your Rating: Age/Event Date: Not listed

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Date Logged Log   08/01/2019 Alancache visited it