Scheduled Monuments›Scotland›Calanais or Callanish Standing Stones

Calanais or Callanish Standing Stones

Scotland
HES SM90054
Nation
Scotland
Boundary

Scheduled area

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

Overview

History & significance

Calanais Standing Stones is a Neolithic ceremonial monument located on the Isle of Lewis in the Outer Hebrides, Ross-shire. The site comprises a central circle of thirteen stones arranged around a chambered cairn, with four stone-lined avenues extending outward in a cruciform pattern, creating a distinctive cross-like layout. Dating to approximately 2900 BCE, the monument was erected during the late Neolithic period and represents one of the most substantial stone circles in Scotland. The stones themselves are of local Lewisian gneiss, rising to heights of up to 4.7 metres, and the site has been subject to archaeological investigation which confirmed its Neolithic origins through pottery and radiocarbon dating evidence.

Calanais or Callanish Standing Stones is a scheduled monument protected by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM90054. View the official record →

About this monument

Questions & answers

What is Calanais or Callanish Standing Stones?

Calanais Standing Stones is a Neolithic ceremonial monument located on the Isle of Lewis in the Outer Hebrides, Ross-shire. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM90054.

Who is responsible for protecting Calanais or Callanish Standing Stones?

Calanais or Callanish Standing Stones 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 SM90054.

What other scheduled monuments are near Calanais or Callanish Standing Stones?

Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Ceann a'Gharaodh,stone circle and cairn 250m N of (1 km), Cnoc Fillibhir Bheag,stone circle and stone settings (1.2 km), Rubha nan Sidhean,cupmarked rocks and fish trap,Kirkibost (2.3 km).

Unlimited access

Everything a full report reveals about Calanais or Callanish Standing Stones

This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 14 strands of Calanais or Callanish Standing Stones'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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Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.

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Nearby

Other scheduled monuments within 10 km

Ceann a'Gharaodh,stone circle and cairn 250m N of
Bronze Age · Stone circle and cairn1 km
Cnoc Fillibhir Bheag,stone circle and stone settings
Bronze Age · Stone circle and stone settings1.2 km
Rubha nan Sidhean,cupmarked rocks and fish trap,Kirkibost
Cupmarked rocks and fish trap,kirkibost2.3 km
Cnoc a' Phrionnsa,chambered cairn
Neolithic · Chambered cairn2.5 km
St Macra's Church,Kirkibost
Kirkibost2.7 km
Sron a'Chail,stone circle and cairn 450m SSE of Ceann Hulavig
Bronze Age · Stone circle and cairn 450m sse of ceann hulavig3.1 km
Airidh nam Bidearan,standing stones N of
Bronze Age · Standing stones3.8 km
Airigh Mhaoldonuich,fallen standing stone
Bronze Age · Fallen standing stone3.9 km
The ground beneath

The bedrock under Calanais or Callanish Standing Stones

Calanais or Callanish Standing Stones stands on Lewisian Complex, bedrock that formed in the Proterozoic. The rock here is gneiss.

The wider landscape

Around Calanais or Callanish Standing Stones

Callanish StonesArchaeological site · ~0 miles
All Scheduled Monuments