Skara Brae, a Celtic town full of mysteries in Scotland

Skara Brae Scotland
Although today almost everything has an explanation, it is still possible to find mysterious corners throughout the planet and, how could it be otherwise, in Vuela Viajes we have told you about a lot of them: the tomb of Newgrange in Ireland, the Nazca lines in Peru, the island of Por-Bajin in Siberia… Fortunately, we still have many more amazing places to discover.

Today, for example, we want to tell you about one of the oldest settlements in the world. Yes! YES! As you are reading it! We are referring to Skara Brae , a Celtic town that, according to experts, was founded in 3,200 BC What makes this place a mysterious destination is not only the sophistication of the town, which we will talk about later, but the fact that that, according to the investigations, its inhabitants left as if they were fleeing from something. Do you want to discover more details about this spectacular archaeological site? Well, be very attentive to what we tell you below!

Location and main characteristics

The Celtic village of Skara Brae is located on a hill by the sea in the village of Skerrabra, in the Orkney Islands, an archipelago located in the north of Scotland . One of the most surprising things about this settlement is that all the houses are the same size. In addition, they all have the same type of plant, which suggests that it was a commune and not a hierarchical society. It is also important to note that there were covered walkways between the houses that led to an open paved area.

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A most sophisticated town

Despite being over 5,000 years old, the Celtic town of Skara Brae was highly sophisticated. And don’t think we’re exaggerating! The inhabitants of this place had everything from locks to drainage systems, in addition to plumbing elements to evacuate waste, built-in sideboards, embedded compartments, water tanks, insulating material … There is also a room that only opens from the outside, so It could be a kind of jail.

The discovery of Skara Brae

Perhaps the most curious thing about this site is the way it was discovered. And it is that if it were not for one of the most common meteorological phenomena in the world (yes, we are referring to the rain), we may not know the existence of this town today. In reality, what made it possible for Skara Brae to come to light was a storm that, for two days, the inhabitants of Great Britain suffered in 1850. And although the storm had many negative consequences, it also triggered this great discovery, since the Water ripped grass from a mound to reveal the remains of this solid stone village. Later, the experts uncovered the entire settlement, which had remained practically intact thanks to being buried for so many centuries.

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Its mysteries

As we have mentioned before, one of the great mysteries of this settlement is the reason that made the inhabitants of this place leave the area, although everything indicates that they were fleeing from something. In addition, experts do not know why this commune decided to settle in this place, although there is evidence that they were here for about 600 years. On the other hand, the function of the watertight deposits in all houses is unknown. Then we leave you with our gallery , where you will find more images of Skara Brae. Do not miss it!