Scheduled MonumentsScotlandBridge of Badnagie,chambered cairn 610m NNW of
Neolithic · Chambered cairn

Bridge of Badnagie,chambered cairn 610m NNW of

Scotland
HES SM425
Period
Neolithic
Site type
Chambered cairn
Nation
Scotland
Boundary

Scheduled area

© Mapbox · © OpenStreetMap contributors · Boundary data © Historic Environment Scotland

Overview

History & significance

Bridge of Badnagie is a Neolithic chambered cairn situated in Caithness, northern Scotland. The monument stands on bedrock of Middle Old Red Sandstone formed during the Middle Devonian period, comprising conglomerate, sandstone, siltstone and mudstone. This geological foundation would have presented local Neolithic communities with readily available stone for cairn construction, though the precise character of the chamber and any surviving structural elements require site assessment to establish.

Chambered cairns of this type, typically dating to the fourth and third millennia BC, served as communal burial monuments for the dispersed farming populations of Atlantic Scotland. These structures combined ritual significance with practical function, their chambers sealed within stone mounds. The Caithness landscape, with its abundant stone resources and open terrain, supported a concentration of such monuments reflecting sustained settlement patterns across the north.

Bridge of Badnagie is protected as a scheduled monument under Historic Environment Scotland reference SM425, recognising its importance to understanding Neolithic settlement, burial practice and cultural development in this region. The site contributes to the wider archaeological record of Caithness, which contains numerous chambered cairns and other prehistoric monuments.

Bridge of Badnagie,chambered cairn 610m NNW of is a scheduled monument protected by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM425. View the official record →

About this monument

Questions & answers

What is Bridge of Badnagie,chambered cairn 610m NNW of?

Bridge of Badnagie is a Neolithic chambered cairn situated in Caithness, northern Scotland. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM425.

What period does Bridge of Badnagie,chambered cairn 610m NNW of date from?

Bridge of Badnagie,chambered cairn 610m NNW 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.

Who is responsible for protecting Bridge of Badnagie,chambered cairn 610m NNW of?

Bridge of Badnagie,chambered cairn 610m NNW 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 SM425.

What other scheduled monuments are near Bridge of Badnagie,chambered cairn 610m NNW of?

Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Clais-Cairn,chambered cairn 550m SW of (6.1 km), Upper Borgue,standing stone 410m SSE of (6.6 km), Berriedale Water, cairn 250m NNW of Millery (8.4 km).

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Everything a full report reveals about Bridge of Badnagie,chambered cairn 610m NNW of

This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 14 strands of Bridge of Badnagie,chambered cairn 610m NNW of's history, each drawn from the record and mapped to the exact spot:

Overview
An interactive map of the location with every monument and battle plotted, and a plain-language history built only from what the record holds.
Monuments
The legally protected scheduled monuments around the location, each with its period, type and significance.
Battlefields
The battles and sieges fought on this ground, mapped and set on a timeline of the wider conflict.
Roman Britain
The Roman roads, forts and towns near here, and the Iron Age people who held the land before Rome arrived.
Stat Accounts
The parish Statistical Accounts of the 1790s and 1830s, describing life, work and population here.
Civil War
The Civil War fighting, garrisons and recorded militaria in this area, woven into the arc of 1642 to 1651.
Geology
The bedrock beneath the site, its age and rock type, reaching back hundreds of millions of years.
Local Names
What the street and field names around here actually mean, and the history buried inside them.
Historical Maps
Ordnance Survey maps from the 1800s, layered over the location as it stands today.
Literature
The books, county histories, charters and archives that mention this place, quoted with their sources.
Legal
The protected sites nearby and the metal-detecting, access and treasure laws that apply to this ground.
Spotlight
A deep dive into the most remarkable, lesser-known history of the place, traced back to the record.
Target Zones
For detectorists: the most promising ground to search nearby, ranked by confidence, with what to expect.
Timeline
The whole story of the location told era by era, from prehistory to the present day.
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The ground beneath

The bedrock under Bridge of Badnagie,chambered cairn 610m NNW of

Bridge of Badnagie,chambered cairn 610m NNW of stands on Middle Old Red Sandstone (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Middle Devonian. The rock here is conglomerate, sandstone, siltstone and mudstone.