Day 19
At last the sunshine visited us in Sanday and the wind died for a while.
At the start of the day it looked like we had our work cut out as there was a huge amount of rubble to move from the interior of the structure, including some huge blocks. Unbelievably, we managed to remove the lot and now an occupation surface is slowly emerging, together with flagstone covered drains.
In doing this work, the sheer size of the interior was revealed – and it is massive. As the walls were exposed, the skill of the builders to create fine flush walling – even when curving – has become apparent.
Large sherds of Early Neolithic pottery are now being found, some probable carinated bowl. Stone tools abound and some really interesting flint artefacts. But the most spectacular find remains the hall itself and Sanday folk are out in their droves to see the monument, which has remained hidden for well over 5,000 years. This is why archaeology is such fun!
We also had a surprise visitor today – Dave Sneddon, who was one of my old Glasgow students and is now a director of a Glasgow archaeological unit. It was very nice to see him after many years and he was flabbergasted by the scale of the building, even though he had worked many years ago at the Stonehall Neolithic settlement site on the Orkney Mainland and dug an Early Neolithic house!
Professor Colin Richards
