Eilean Dòmhnuill facts for kids
Imagine living on a small island built right in the middle of a lake! That's what people might have done thousands of years ago at a place called Eilean Dòmhnuill. This special island is located in Loch Olabhat, on North Uist, a beautiful island in Scotland. Many experts believe Eilean Dòmhnuill might be the very first "crannog" ever built. A crannog is an ancient type of home, often built on an artificial island in a lake.
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Eilean Dòmhnuill: Scotland's Oldest Island Settlement
Eilean Dòmhnuill, whose name means "The Isle of Donald" in Scottish Gaelic, is a truly amazing archaeological site. It gives us a peek into how people lived a very long time ago. Archaeologist Ian Armit has studied this site carefully. He thinks it could be the earliest example of a crannog ever found.
What is a Crannog? An Ancient Island Home
A crannog is a special kind of ancient settlement. It's usually a platform or island built by people in a lake, loch, or even a river. People in Scotland and Ireland built crannogs a very long time ago. They used materials like wood, stones, and earth to create these islands. Living on a crannog offered protection from enemies and wild animals. It was like having your own private, watery fortress!
Discovering Clues: Life in the Stone Age
Archaeologists, who are like history detectives, found many clues at Eilean Dòmhnuill. They discovered pieces of pottery called Unstan ware. This type of pottery tells us a lot about when people lived there. The pottery suggests that Eilean Dòmhnuill was used during the Neolithic period. This time is also known as the New Stone Age. It was around 3200 to 2800 BC. That's over 5,000 years ago!
Building on the Water: How Eilean Dòmhnuill Was Made
The people who lived at Eilean Dòmhnuill were very clever builders. They created a timber (wood) screen around their island home. This screen likely helped protect the settlement. They also built houses with walls made of turf, which is like thick grass and soil. It seems these homes were often taken down and rebuilt over time.
What Were the Houses Like?
In the last period of building, archaeologists found two oblong (long and rectangular) structures. These had stone foundations. They look quite similar to the ancient houses found at Knap of Howar. Knap of Howar is another very old settlement on Papa Westray, one of the Orkney islands. This suggests that people in different parts of ancient Scotland might have built their homes in similar ways.
Life on the Island: What Was It Like?
Imagine living on Eilean Dòmhnuill thousands of years ago. You would have been surrounded by water, with a causeway (a raised road) connecting you to the land. People would have fished in the loch and farmed on the nearby land. The turf houses would have been cozy, and the timber screen would have offered a sense of safety. Eilean Dòmhnuill shows us how resourceful and skilled ancient people were at building homes in challenging places.
