Broch of Mousa

                                                      Brochs

The buildings now known as Brochs were constructed in Scotland during the Iron Age. They were mostly built in the extreme north of Scotland including Caithness and the Orkney and Shetland islands. A significant number were also built in the Western isles during this period. The building known as a Broch is a hollow-walled fort type structure. There are over 550 identified Broch sites in Scotland with over 100 in the Shetland Islands alone. The origin of the Brochs is still unclear though the bulk of them are believed to be from the 1st century BC to the 1st century AD. The fact that a majority of Brochs were built in the North of Scotland extending to the West coast and the Hebrides is thought by some historians to indicate that they were primarily intended for defence. There are also few Brochs in the borders area of Scotland.

                                          Purpose of the Brochs       

However the claims for the defence role for these Brochs have more recently been disputed by other historians  but the true function of these Brochs has never been firmly established to everyone’s satisfaction. Some historians believe that each individual broch was designed for a specific purpose. It is thought that Brochs may have had timber roofs though this is not certain.

                                           Design of the Brochs

Brochs are usually between five to fifteen metres high with a spiral staircase winding upwards between the inner and outer wall, connecting the galleries. The walls tend to be around three metres high. One of the best examples is at Mousa in Shetland (see picture above). This impressive building has well preserved walls at 13 metres high with the usual spiral staircase and galleries.

                                         The Caithness Project

This project has been initiated in order to build a new version of the Broch on a site in Caithness. The new broch is to be modelled on the most complete building to survive which is  situated on the Island of Mousa, part of the Shetland islands. This new broch is to be built using the traditional techniques of the period (600 BC-100 AD) including drystone walling.