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Barns of Hempriggs is a Neolithic chambered cairn located in Caithness, northern Scotland, situated 550 metres south-south-east of the settlement from which it takes its name. The monument stands upon bedrock of Middle Devonian age, comprising conglomerate, sandstone, siltstone and mudstone of the Middle Old Red Sandstone formation. This geology would have shaped the availability of stone for the cairn's construction and influenced the landscape in which Neolithic communities established this burial monument.
Chambered cairns of this type represent one of the most enduring monumental forms of the Neolithic period in Scotland, serving as communal burial places for successive generations. The Caithness region contains a notable concentration of such structures, reflecting sustained settlement and ritual activity across the far north during the fourth and third millennia before the present.
The site is now protected by Historic Environment Scotland as a scheduled monument under reference SM455, recognising its archaeological significance and ensuring its preservation for future study and public understanding of Neolithic funerary practice and settlement patterns in northern Britain.
Barns of Hempriggs, chambered cairn 550m SSE of is a scheduled monument protected by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM455. View the official record →
Barns of Hempriggs is a Neolithic chambered cairn located in Caithness, northern Scotland, situated 550 metres south-south-east of the settlement from which it takes its name. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM455.
Barns of Hempriggs, chambered cairn 550m SSE of dates from the neolithic period, and is classified as a chambered cairn. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.
Barns of Hempriggs, chambered cairn 550m SSE of is a Scheduled Ancient Monument, legally protected by Historic Environment Scotland — the body responsible for designating and safeguarding heritage sites in Scotland. The official designation reference is SM455.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Langstane, standing stone 40m S of (6.4 km), Ulbster School, broch 125m S of Schoolhouse (6.5 km), Watenan,broch 140m N of,Ulbster (6.9 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 14 strands of Barns of Hempriggs, chambered cairn 550m SSE of's history, each drawn from the record and mapped to the exact spot:
Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.
Barns of Hempriggs, chambered cairn 550m SSE of stands on Middle Old Red Sandstone (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Middle Devonian. The rock here is conglomerate, sandstone, siltstone and mudstone.