Jerusalem, Israel
19 BCE
Jerusalem, Israel
1892-1898
Jerusalem, Israel
335 CE
Jerusalem, Israel
691 CE
Jerusalem, Israel
324-500 CE
Jerusalem, Israel
705 CE
Jerusalem, Israel
1856/2010
Acre, Israel
1781
Acre, Israel
1758
Jerusalem, Israel
1131-1138
Acre, Israel
1673
Jerusalem, Israel
12th century
Jerusalem, Israel
11th century
The Broch of Gurness is an Iron Age broch village. Settlement here began sometime between 500 and 200 BC. At the centre of the settlement is a stone tower or broch, which once probably reached a height of around 10 metres. Its interior is divided into sections by upright slabs. The tower features two skins of drystone walls, with stone-floored galleries in between. These are accessed by steps. Stone ledges suggest that there was once an upper storey with a timber floor. The roof would have been thatched, surrounded by a wall walk linked by stairs to the ground floor. The broch features two hearths and a subterranean stone cistern with steps leading down into it. It is thought to have some religious significance, relating to an Iron Age cult of the underground.
The remains of the central tower are up to 3.6 metres high, and the stone walls are up to 4.1 metres thick.