Carlungie Earth House, Dundee, United Kingdom

At about 40m long, Carlungie Earth House is one of the largest and most complex examples of its kind in Scotland. It was accidentally discovered during ploughing in 1949. Subsequent excavations during the following two years also revealed about eight associated stone dwellings at ground level.

Earth houses, or souterrains as they are also known, were not dwellings, but stone-lined underground passages which typically date to the Iron Age. They’re found along much of eastern Scotland, as well as in Ireland, Cornwall and Brittany.

References:

Historic Environment Scotland

Prehistoric and archaeological sites in United Kingdom

User Reviews

Ian Whittaker (2 years ago)
Follow the sign to Carlungie and then you'll see the small sign by the side of the road and a gateway leading 50 m or so across a field to these remains. When we visited (September 2021) the surrounding field was planted with Brussels Sprouts so you would get very wet legs walking across the field if it has been recently raining! Something I've never seen before, but you do need to be a bit of a fan of archaeology to find it a riveting visit. Having said that it was worth the hunt.

Iain Hunter (2 years ago)
first time seen the sign for it. It was interesting

pam imrie (2 years ago)
Amazing to have these historical gems on our doorstep.

Andrew Lawson (3 years ago)
A bit of a hole in the ground and various bit of stone works shows that someone, at some point had a building there. Pretty pointless. Info board and small parking. Not really worth a visit.

Andy Lawson (3 years ago)
A bit of a hole in the ground and various bit of stone works shows that someone, at some point had a building there. Pretty pointless. Info board and small parking. Not really worth a visit.

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Monte d'Accoddi

Monte d"Accoddi is a Neolithic archaeological site in northern Sardinia, located in the territory of Sassari. The site consists of a massive raised stone platform thought to have been an altar. It was constructed by the Ozieri culture or earlier, with the oldest parts dated to around 4,000–3,650 BC.

The site was discovered in 1954 in a field owned by the Segni family. No chambers or entrances to the mound have been found, leading to the presumption it was an altar, a temple or a step pyramid. It may have also served an observational function, as its square plan is coordinated with the cardinal points of the compass.

The initial Ozieri structure was abandoned or destroyed around 3000 BC, with traces of fire found in the archeological evidence. Around 2800 BC the remains of the original structure were completely covered with a layered mixture of earth and stone, and large blocks of limestone were then applied to establish a second platform, truncated by a step pyramid (36 m × 29 m, about 10 m in height), accessible by means of a second ramp, 42 m long, built over the older one. This second temple resembles contemporary Mesopotamian ziggurats, and is attributed to the Abealzu-Filigosa culture.

Archeological excavations from the chalcolithic Abealzu-Filigosa layers indicate the Monte d"Accoddi was used for animal sacrifice, with the remains of sheep, cattle, and swine recovered in near equal proportions. It is among the earliest known sacrificial sites in Western Europe.

The site appears to have been abandoned again around 1800 BC, at the onset of the Nuragic age.

The monument was partially reconstructed during the 1980s. It is open to the public and accessible by the old route of SS131 highway, near the hamlet of Ottava. It is 14,9 km from Sassari and 45 km from Alghero. There is no public transportation to the site. The opening times vary throughout the year.

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