Adding us as a Preferred Source tells Google you trust our content, so our articles show up more often in your Google Search, Discover feed, and AI Overviews.
verifiedCite
While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies.
Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions.
Select Citation Style
Maeshowe barrow
Maeshowe barrow, Orkney Islands, Scotland.
Maeshowe barrow
prehistoric mound, Mainland, Orkney Islands, Scotland, United Kingdom
Maeshowe barrow, prehistoric chambered mound located northeast of Stromness on Mainland (or Pomona) in the Orkney Islands, Scotland. The mound, probably built as a tomb for a chieftain family, was in the shape of a blunted cone, 300 feet (91 meters) in circumference, and was encircled by a moat about 90 feet (27 meters) from its base. The mound was probably entered from the west by a passage leading to a central apartment, the walls of which ended in a beehive roof. Maeshowe barrow has also been attributed to 10th-century Norsemen; more plausibly, a band of Norsemen at one time may have used the mound for shelter, cutting a runic record of their visit on the stones and at the same time robbing the tomb of its possessions.
The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica This article was most recently revised and updated by Amy Tikkanen.
Discover the fascinating events that shaped the world, straight from our editors.
By clicking “Sign Up”, you consent to the Britannica
Privacy Policy
and
Terms of Use.