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Barpa Langass is a Neolithic chambered cairn, which now survives as a massive pile of stone. It is located on a hill overlooking a dramatic landscape of barren peatland. The cairn is roughly 16 feet high, and around 82 feet across. The inner chamber is still accessible. From the east side of the tomb the narrow passage leads to a wide chamber. It is difficult to judge the original appearance of the cairn, but it has been suggested that it had a more bun like appearance with outer facing stones and an earthen top portion. This great cairn is the only chambered cairn in the Western Isles with its chamber still roofed over. During excavation in 1911 traces of burnt burials, beaker shards, an arrowhead and a disc of mica (maybe a pendant) were found. On the south side of the same hill is Pobull Fhinn an ancient stone circle.
At the time the cairn was built the Western Isles had a much milder climate, the peat bogs were not yet formed, and the landscape would have been more like southern scrubland and woodland. It would have been capable of providing pasture for grazing animals. Barpa Langass stands on the north side of Beinn Langais, and just half a mile from the stone circle of Pobull Fhinn To find this grand cairn travel to North Uist and it is signposted off the A867 Lochmaddy-Clachan road.
References:The historical centre of Briançon is a strongly fortified town, built by Vauban to defend the region from Austrians in the 17th century. Its streets are very steep and narrow, though picturesque. Briançon lies at the foot of the descent from the Col de Montgenèvre, giving access to Turin, so a great number of other fortifications have been constructed on the surrounding heights, especially towards the east.
The Savoyards made two raids into French territory in 1691 and 1692. As a result, Vauban was dispatched to inspect the frontier defences, which had been ill-equiped to deal with the attack from Savoy. He returned to the area in 1700 to check on the progress that had been made since his first visit. When Vauban visited Briançon, work on the defences had already started under a local engineer, Monsieur d"Angrogne in 1692.