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Houton Chapel is a medieval chapel located 60 metres east of Sunnybraes in Orkney, Scotland. The building stands on bedrock of Middle Old Red Sandstone, formed during the Middle Devonian period, comprising conglomerate, sandstone, siltstone and mudstone that would have provided both building material and a stable foundation for construction. The chapel is protected as a scheduled monument by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM3245, reflecting its significance as a surviving example of medieval religious architecture in the islands. Such chapels typically served local communities for worship and religious observance, often built near established settlements as evidenced by its proximity to Sunnybraes. The Orkney landscape, with its sparse vegetation and exposed geology, has allowed the monument to survive into the modern period, though the exposed sandstone bedrock would have presented both opportunities and challenges for medieval builders working without modern quarrying technology.
Houton, chapel 60m E of Sunnybraes is a scheduled monument protected by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM3245. View the official record →
Houton Chapel is a medieval chapel located 60 metres east of Sunnybraes in Orkney, Scotland. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM3245.
Houton, chapel 60m E of Sunnybraes dates from the medieval period, and is classified as a chapel 60m e of sunnybraes. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.
Houton, chapel 60m E of Sunnybraes 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 SM3245.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Houton Head, battery 325m W of Sunnybraes (0.4 km), Lavacroon, settlement W of Bu of Orphir (2.2 km), Bu of Orphir, burnt mound and mill dam 250m NW of Bu Farm (2.3 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 14 strands of Houton, chapel 60m E of Sunnybraes'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.
Houton, chapel 60m E of Sunnybraes stands on Middle Old Red Sandstone (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Middle Devonian. The rock here is conglomerate, sandstone, siltstone and mudstone.