Our Last Orcadian Day

---

Monday 16th June

Back to being colder and a little damp today. Again, plenty of wind. We started the day off by going to Mine Howe (Who remembers their Ancient Norse I've been teaching you? Howe means mound,). Indeed Mine Howe does appear first as a small grassy mound at the top of a very small rise. And mine means the same as in English so the place name means "the (mine) shaft in the mound". Mine Howe's age is estimated as 600-100BC which is the Early Iron Age. Caz had described this as a very weird hole in the ground, but the PR people at Scottish Heritage had gone one better and are marketing it as "Mine Howe: The mystery of the 29 steps".

We were given hard hats to wear (more for fear of hitting our heads than for the roof collapsing), and seeing this and the steepness of the stairs, Marion pulled the pin, so only Caz, Owen and I were going down the mine.. To aid people in entering the site a ladder has been erected at the top of the hole and a glowing plastic strip of electric light runs down one side of the pit alongside the ladder railings.

The first set of steps curve down 3m to a landing. Here two chambers of been built off to the right, one above the other. Each chamber is a couple of feet tall and a little over 2 metres long so it would be possible to wriggle into either of them and lie prone. However there is no evidence that they were used in this way. Neither of the chambers has a proper floor, but instead have rough surfaces overlain with ashy refuse material. When originally excavated a dog skull was found at the entrance to the lower, slightly smaller gallery.

At the platform the stairs turn back on themselves and a second flight of steps, at about a 180 degree angle to the original set, descend a further 4m. There is a drop of almost 1m from the bottom stone step (but negotiating it has been made easier by the provision of some metal stairs to bridge the gap) to a D-shaped chamber with a floor created from two massive flagstone blocks. The chamber is about 1.3m in diameter and around 4 m high

All of this feature seem to have been built during a single phase of composition. The only way Mine Howe could've been constructed was to dig a pit and then build the structure from the bottom up.

There is also a henge, or ditch, about 40m in diameter, 7m wide and 2m deep surrounding Mine Howe as well as evidence of settlement close by both prior to and after the construction of "the 29 steps".

Mine Howe appears to be an Iron Age feature having many parallels in the design and building techniques employed in the step features found in "wells" within brochs. (Such as we heard about at the Broch of Gurness.) However the "wells" are smaller and shallower while the size, condition and position of Mine Howe (much larger and extensive, no water in the bottom, not within a broch) make it a unique site.

What was it used for? No one really knows so the standard archaeological catch-all of ritual and religion is suggested as a possibility. Whatever it was used for, the Iron Age Orcadians went to a lot of time and effort to create it.

We were now zapping forward almost 2000 years as we travelled to the Italian Chapel. (Yes, we could even find churches here, and as you will discover, if you read on, we found two complete churches and two church ruins to investigate in Orkney)

During the second World War Orkney served as an Italian POW camp, Camp 60. The Italians held here were captured fighting alongside Rommel in the desert of Africa; what they made of the cold, wet, windy, dark Orcadian conditions after the heat and dryness of Libya and Egypt would be hard to imagine. During their internment they made large concrete blocks to create the "Churchill Barriers" (more on them a little later).

The Italians decided instead to put both of them together and create a church. Today it is referred to as "The Italian Chapel" or the "Miracle of Camp 60".

Originally the camp consisted of thirteen or so cheerless huts. But the active Italians went about beautifying the harsh place they were forced to live in. They transformed the whole area by creating concrete paths, planting flowerbeds and generally doing what they could to make their internment as pleasant as possible. In the centre of their "town square" an artistic prisoner, Domenico Chiocchetti, made a statue of St. George slaying a dragon. (which still survives to this day.) The heart of the figure was created with barbed wire which was then covered with cement.

The Catholic prisoners were suffering from a lack of a place of worship. Late in 1943 a sympathetic Commandant, Major (later Colonel) T.P. Buckland, an enthusiastic padre, Father P. Gioachino Giacobazzi were transferred to Camp 60. Somebody, either one of the gentlemen just mentioned, or perhaps one of the POWs hit upon the idea of creating a chapel for worship.

The prisoners were given two Nissan huts (pre-fabricated corrugated iron huts in the shape of a half cylinder lying down on their flat side) one for a chapel and one for a school. The POWs decided instead to place the two huts end to end and joined them together. Chiocchetti, aided by the other prisoners set about creating their chapel. Everything had to be produced from the most basic of materials, the majority of it second-hand and much of it worthless scrap.

The ugly corrugated iron of the hut was covered with plasterboard. The altar, altar rail and holy water stoop were all moulded from concrete. Candelabra were made, some in iron, some in brass. Wood for the tabernacle was scrounged from a wrecked ship. Chiocchetti painted a Madonna and child (from a picture he carried throughout the war) and painted other areas of the sanctuary. A rood-screen and Gate were made from wrought iron, the rest of the interior of the hut panelled and painted to resemble brick with a dado along the base of the walls to imitate curved stone.

Now that the interior of the hut was a beautiful place for worship, the rude appearance of the exterior of the huts was highlighted. A facade was created to hide the ugliness of the exterior outline of the huts. In the centre was an archway supported by cement pillars, with two Gothic windows of painted glass on each side. Above was a belfry which was ornamented on both sides by Gothic pinnacles.

The font used some large spring cadged from somewhere as it's upright, and as a result, even though covered by cement, it wobbles from side to side under the lightest touch.

The chapel is certainly a beautiful building and has forged a lasting friendship between Italy and Orkney.

The materials used for the creation of the chapel make preservation of the chapel difficult, if not impossible.

Chiocchetti returned to Orkney in the 1960s to restore some of the damaged sections of the chapel.

The humid Orcadian weather is inimical to the many of the materials used in the huts construction; while we were there some damage was visible and an electric fan ran constantly in an effort to reduce the moisture level inside. Conservation of the chapel is certainly a challenging, ongoing, perhaps impossible, task.

As I mentioned in yesterday's blog Scapa Flow is a large land-locked harbour, used as the main port for the British fleet in both World Wars. Prior to the outbreak of WW2 Scapa Flow had four channels leading into the naval anchorage. Sunken ships were used to block these and it was believed that attack from that direction was now impossible.

In October 1939 a German U-boat commander, Lieutenant-Commander Prien took advantage of a gap in the defences of Holm Sound and an exceptionally high tide. Prien sailed the U47 into Scapa Flow unnoticed. The soldiers supposed to be on sentry duty either didn't observe the U-boat or, according to rumour, were not at their posts because there was a dance and they had decided to join in the festivities.

The U47 fired two torpedoes at the moored battleship HMS Royal Oak, both of which unaccountably missed, but no alarm was raised on the battleship. U47 re-loaded, fired another two torpedoes, both of which struck the Royal Oak, before escaping from the Scapa Flow.

The HMS Royal Oak was sunk taking more than 800 men with it. As a result the Royal Navy abandoned Scapa Flow until the entrances were securely sealed. This was a major undertaking; the total length of the four sections to be blocked was one and a half miles (3km) and the depth of the water in some places was as deep as
59 ft (20m).

The Balfour Beatty firm were appointed to build the "Churchill Barriers" and to solve the labour shortage the Italian POWs were conscripted. The Italian's immediately complained and pointed out that by the Geneva convention they could not be used to aid the Allied war effort (and making Scapa Flow U-boat proof would certainly fall in that category.)

Balfour Beatty re-approached the POWs and explained that what they would be building would not be barriers, but causeways to connect a number of the Orkney islands and allow cars to drive from one island to another. The Italians therefore agreed to build the "Churchill Causeways". So although their official name is the "Churchill Causeways" all Orcadians (and books) refer to them as the "Churchill Barriers". So now you know "what's in a name"!

First nearly 1 million cubic metres of rock and stone in wire bolsters, weighing more than a quarter of a million tons, was sunk into the channels. On top of this were dropped 66,000 huge blocks of concrete, some weighing five tons and some ten tons. These blocks are placed in varying positions along the edges of the barriers, their differing angles and edges preventing the waves or tide from sweeping over the carriageway which traverses the top.

The roads on the barriers/causeways are still used to the present day.

Caz had made some alterations to our itinerary so that Marion wasn't forced to only look at 'quote' "boring old rocks" 'end quote' by including a visit to Sheila Fleet's Jewellery store. Sheila took us through her factory and showed us all the steps that a piece of jewellery goes through from design, moulding, filing and" hand painted" enamelling.

But the real purpose of our call was, of course, a visit to the showroom. Most of Shelia's jewellery is silver although there were a few gold pieces. Marion brought a silver necklace with a design based on the Stones of Stenness, and a number of smaller pieces as presents.

Over lunch we chatted with Caz about her job. She often takes people from cruise ships on single day tours and one of her "worst" memories was one day when she picked up a couple from a cruise to find the young lady clad in a silk top and high heel shoes. (The rest of the day did not go well!) After lunch we visited the Brough ("brock") of Birsay. Brough is derived from a Norse word meaning Island but is pronounced in the same way as broch.

The Brough of Birsay is a tidal island. From the headland car park we had to cross a causeway to get to the island. The causeway does have a central path of concrete , but rock hopping is required at either end. The tiny island is usually accessible by foot but during very high tides a boat is required. The only thing on the ½ mile diameter island, other than the Pictish and Viking ruins and its associated visitor centre, is a lighthouse.

I found the Brough of Birsay much less spectacular than the Broch of Gurness. The first part of the site we looked at contained a couple of 20m long foundations of what were probably Norse dormitories or "barracks" from the 10th or 11th C.. These have been built over earlier Pictish buildings, possibly as old as the first century but more likely hailing from around the 5C..

The central feature was the remains of a12th C church. This church was the only building in the area that was more than a few bricks high. The layout of the church had been preserved and the altar and the chancel surrounding it were the best preserved being a couple of dozen bricks high. Alongside are the foundations of what is presumed to be a monastery from the same era. On the other side of the church is a copy of a large Pictish symbol stone (The original is in a museum) with carvings on it.

Trapped between the sea and the church are a number of 11th and 12th C house foundations; their major point of interest being a bathhouse, under floor heating and a drainage system for the buildings installed by the Norse under slate tiles. Much of the older Pictish village had been sited here but what wasn't built over by the Norse has been washed away as the cliff alongside the buildings slowly advanced.

From here we had a short drive to Barony Mills also in Birsay, (but not on the island). This mill has been at this site since 1873 and is the last operating mill in Orkney. The miller, Brian, started off by showing us small bags of different types of grain, oat, barley and bere, both unground and also ground to different finenesses.

Brian showed us the kiln area and (upstairs) displayed the drying area and the demonstrated the method of moving the grain about to ensure that all of it was thoroughly dry. The drying room was also, in the past, used for drying malt, which was an important ingredient in producing home-brewed ale.

The main grain milled here was bere which has been grown in Orkney for years both for human consumption and for animal fodder. In the old days it was called Brygg, the word now used for barley in Norway. Bere has been the "staff of life" in Orkney replacing wheat in that role. Bere is a variety of barley, although it differes maekedly both in appearance and taste. Brian offered us a bere biscuit was very nice and had an "oaty" taste. Marion gave it the thumbs up, unlike the bere bannock.

Brian had Owen pull the lever that started the mill. The lever opened a "trapdoor" in the sluice which dropped the water onto the blades of the water wheel (unlike the more conventional type where the wheel sits in the sluice and the water running under it causes it to turn. 110,000 gallons of water per hour from the nearby Boardhouse loch are channelled over the wheel to grind grain.

Starting the wheel also started all the machinery within the mill, and Brian took us through all the steps required to grind the dried grain. He also told us that the ground grain each farmer got was not necessarily the grain he had brought, but that he would get the correct quantity.

From Barony mills we travelled back to Kirkwall and the St. Magnus Cathedral. This imposing structure was begun in 1137, much older than the other cathedrals we had seen in Europe.

Earl Magnus inherited the Norse kingdom of Orkney jointly with his cousin, Earl Haakon Paulston. Predictably the cousins fought. At a meeting to try and bring about peace in 1117, Haakon brought eight ships instead of the agreed two. Magnus refused to allow his men to defend him against his cousin and instead tried to settle matters in an amicable way by praying to God. Magnus made three offers to Haakon to ensure Haakon's sole rule; he would go on pilgrimage to Rome and never return to Orkney; he could be imprisoned for the rest of his life or he could be blinded, maimed and then thrown in to a dungeon. Although he was tempted to grant the last of these, Haakon's supporters insisted that Magnus must be slain, and so Haakon gave his cook the chore. (I think I'm glad I don't eat food he prepared).

Magnus was originally buried in Christ's Chuch, Birsay, but after reports of miraculous cures occurring at his burial place he was sanctified and his remains moved to this cathedral which now bears his name.

The Cathedral has some of the most beautiful, striking doorways we have seen. The age of the cathedral is obvious because of the far thicker columns used, as opposed to the thinner, slimmer ones employed in later churches. Even so there has been some structural damage to the columns in the Nave nearest the West Door a part of the cathedral extensions in the 15th and 16th Centuries. Some of the pillars here are leaning toward the door and a number show cracking in the brickwork which has been repaired. The two pillars closest to the door were repaired in modern times.

The cathedral had a very serene, religious atmosphere, more so than many we have seen earlier in our trip. There are a number of gravestones within the cathedral, most of which date from the 17th century but the oldest dates from the 13th C.

There is a curious "memorial", a Mort Brod (or death board) with a skeleton and hour glass depicted on one side and a couple of inscriptions on the other. Around the outside of the side showing the skeletal, shrouded figure are the words "Wherefore he sayeth awake thou that sleepest, arise from the dead and Christ shall give it light". (I have modernised the spelling). On the reverse, in a brown border around the outside are the words: "He shall return no more to his house neither shall this place know him any more". Within the body of the board is the verse: "Below doth lie, if ye would read upon this board, the corpse of one Robert Nicolsone whose soul is above with God. He being 70 years of age ended this mortal life & 50 of that he was married to Jeane Davidson, his wife. Betwixt them 22 children had, whereof 15 left behind the other 7 with him in heaven who's joy shall never end." (The poor woman must've been perpetually pregnant!!!!)

Caz told us that there used to be many of these in churches and cathedrals until the priests eventually realised that they would "clutter" the cathedral effortlessly as more people died and hence the practice was stopped.

Oliver Cromwell's troops installed themselves in Orkney, as well as the rest of Britain, and the central pillars still sport a couple of iron rings used by his soldiers to tether their horses. Some of th pillars and walls also still bear the original mason's marks.

The cathedral is also filled with beautiful wood carving, most of which is from the 20th century.

The south aisle has a memorial to the 833 men who died when the HMS Royal Oak was sunk in Scapa Flow as I explained earlier. The memorial consists of two crossed flags, the Union Jack and the Naval Ensign, below which is the ship's bell (recovered from the wreck), a plaque and a book listing all the names (and rank) of those killed. One page of the book is turned each day.

There was also a larger than life-size wooden statue of St Olaf, another of the "Northern" saints. He is standing on a dragon-like beast with a human head, which apparently represents his "evil" side. (Caz suggested his evil side looked like it had more fun than his saintly side). The statue was presented to the cathedral from the Norwegians on its 800th anniversary.

There was also a beautiful marble statue adorning the tomb of John Rae, a famous Orcadian Artic explorer. He was ostracised by the nobility when he investigated the fate of Sir John Franklin's last expedition. He discovered Franklin's ships crushed in the ice in Hudson Bay and also found the remains of some of the expedition (there were no survivors) and discovered that they had descended to cannibalism in an effort to survive. A malicious newspaper campaign led by Charles Dickens and Franklin's wife, Lady Jane, set out to totally discredit Rae and also to keep from him the large reward that had been offered for news of these men. Rae was eventually vindicated and received the reward, but Dicken's and Lady Jane had created such a stir and the fate of the expedition was so unsavoury that Rae is almost unknown anywhere except in the Orkneys

Caz pointed out a hollow area behind the wall, one story up alongside the organ where witches were held when being tried for witchcraft.

We left the cathedral and Marion indulged herself in some final Orcadian retail therapy in a shop across the way. Caz dropped us at the Ayre hotel and we said our goodbyes.

Our meal at the Ayre hotel that night was a tad strange. Owen and I had both come to the conclusion that their fancy sounding meals weren't quite up to scratch, but their basic pub fare was quite good. Owen and I ordered something relatively straight forward, fish and chips, while Marion ordered another "fancy" dish. The vegetables listed on the description of her meal included mushrooms. Anyone who knows Marion at all well knows she detests and will not eat mushrooms, she therefore requested a substitute of beans for the mushrooms. We were all quite dumbstruck when her meal arrived...along with a side dish of baked beans!

We had a great time in Orkney. For Owen and I it was one of the highlights of the 16 weeks and I would like to publicly thank Caz and Orkney Archaeology Tours for the wonderful time we had.

---

Photos

Minehowe
"The mystery of the 29 steps", or as Caz put it, "a really weird hole in the ground".

Italian Chapel
The pretty, and rather deceiving facade of the Italian Chapel.

Italian Chapel
This side-on photo of the Italian Chapel shows how the church was made from metal half-cylinders.

Chapel
The breathtaking altar of the Italian Chapel.

Font
The chapel font has a spring inside, forming the stand. If pushed, it still wobbles slightly!

Chapel Roof
Hard to believe that this realistic pattern was all hand-painted onto the metal roof of the building!

St. George
This statue of St. George slaying the dragon was constructed using barbed wire and concrete!

Churchill Barrier
One of the Churchill "Causeways" that the Italian POWs constructed.

Churchill Causeway
A close-up of one of the Churchill Causeways, showing the huge concrete blocks used in their construction.

Brough of Birsay
A photo over the rocky beach that we crossed to reach the Brough of Birsay.

Brough
The Brough of Birsay - more ruined buildings, their walls peeking up through the grass.

Brough
Another picture of the Brough of Birsay - the church visible in this photo.

Barony Mill
Some of the traditional milling equipment in Barony Mill.

St. Magnus Cathedral
The impressive facade of St. Magnus Cathedral.

Cathedral Door
One of the elaborate doorways into the St. Magnus Cathedral.

Cathedral
The interior of the St. Magnus Cathedral is constructed of the same beautiful red stone as the facade.

St. Magnus
A statue of St. Magnus, standing upon his "evil side".