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Cairn of Heathercow is a Neolithic long cairn situated on Brabster Moss in Caithness, northern Scotland. The monument lies on bedrock of Middle Old Red Sandstone, a mixed deposit of conglomerate, sandstone, siltstone and mudstone laid down during the Middle Devonian period, which has weathered to create the moorland landscape characteristic of this region. Long cairns of this type typically date to the Early Neolithic, around 4000–3000 BCE, and served as communal burial monuments for the dead, often containing multiple inhumations and cremated remains within stone-built chambers or passages.
The Cairn of Heathercow is protected by Historic Environment Scotland as a scheduled monument under reference SM434, recognising its significance as a rare survival from Scotland's earliest farming communities. Such monuments required substantial effort to construct, with local stone gathered and piled into elongated mounds that could extend for many metres. The moorland setting, with its exposed bedrock and peaty soils, would have presented particular challenges to Neolithic builders.
The survival of long cairns on open moorland such as Brabster Moss owes much to their remote location and the acidic soils that have discouraged later settlement and ploughing. The monument remains an important witness to Neolithic settlement patterns in the far north of Scotland.
Cairn of Heathercow, long cairn, Brabster Moss is a scheduled monument protected by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM434. View the official record →
Cairn of Heathercow is a Neolithic long cairn situated on Brabster Moss in Caithness, northern Scotland. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM434.
Cairn of Heathercow, long cairn, Brabster Moss dates from the neolithic period, and is classified as a long cairn, brabster moss. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.
Cairn of Heathercow, long cairn, Brabster Moss 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 SM434.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Grey Cairn, broch 475m SE of Lynegar (3.8 km), Green Hill Broch, 40m W of Grant Hall (5.3 km), Chapel of Dunn, chapel, 300m SW of Oldhall House (5.8 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 14 strands of Cairn of Heathercow, long cairn, Brabster Moss'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.
Cairn of Heathercow, long cairn, Brabster Moss stands on Middle Old Red Sandstone (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Middle Devonian. The rock here is conglomerate, sandstone, siltstone and mudstone.