Timeline of prehistoric Scotland

No traces have yet been found of either a Neanderthal presence or of Homo sapiens during the Pleistocene interglacials, the first indications of humans in Scotland occurring only after the ice retreated in the 11th millennium BC.

Much of the area also has a thick covering of peat that preserves stone fragments, although the associated acidic conditions tend to dissolve organic materials.

The Mesolithic period in Scotland is characterised by rich assemblages of lithic artefacts that indicate the presence of hunter-gatherer communities, most commonly identified by a narrow blade technology and its characteristic microliths.

Most common raw material is flint beach pebbles, however, a variety of other types of geology, usually from local sources, is represented.

However, Mesolithic bone artefacts have been found, surviving due to favourable preservation conditions – most are associated with the Obanian tradition.

From the commencement of the Bronze Age to about 2000 BC, the archaeological record shows a decline in the number of large new stone buildings constructed.

In Orkney, burials were now being made in small cists well away from the great megalithic sites and a new Beaker culture began to dominate.

Bronze and Iron Age metalworking was slowly introduced to Scotland from Europe over a lengthy period.

For example, finds at the Traprain Law site (near modern Edinburgh) suggest that the priests there may have overseen ceremonies on a par with their contemporaries on mainland Europe.

On the other hand, although the mummifications found at Cladh Hallan in the Western Isles invite comparisons with Egypt, the simple lifestyle of the inhabitants of this settlement contrasts with that of Tutankamun.

The Hirta and Burghead items may date from the Dark Ages some four centuries or more after the appearance of the Romans and the commencement of the historic era.

The ruins of a stone building set on a grassy knoll with blue skies above. The building is circular in outline and all that remains of the structure are the double-skinned walls that rise to two stories in places.
The ruins of Dun Carloway Iron Age broch
A small sandy beach lies beyond a grassy foreshore. In the distance, the outline of a range of brown and grey hills is visible under cloudy skies.
A beach on Oronsay , looking towards Jura . Both islands have produced evidence of Mesolithic human settlement.
A sandy bay at left and an area of rough grassland at right lie next to a body of water in the middle distance. High hills under white clouds line the horizon.
Sand Bay and the Inner Sound . The rock-shelter at Sand is an important Mesolithic site.
A view from an elevation above cultivated fields and a mixed wood of conifers and deciduous trees. Various indistinct buildings are visible among these trees. The brown ridge of a hill in the background has conifers growing on its lower slopes.
Kinloch at the head of Loch Scresort, Rùm . This area has provided two early Mesolithic sites.
A small area of gravel is enclosed by a stone wall built into the surrounding grassy fields. Various large stones sit inside this enclosure and a low doorway has been constructed at the far end. Beyond the doorway, there is a rocky foreshore and a body of water.
Knap of Howar . The site contains what is probably the oldest preserved house in northern Europe.
A jumble of stone walls, larger stones set into the ground and surrounding grassy areas. Various human figures wander past in the background.
Skara Brae in Orkney is Europe's most complete Neolithic village.
Three tall thin monoliths sit in a grassy field under blue skies with two bodies of water beyond at right and left.
The Standing Stones of Stenness , Orkney
A confused arrangement of individual monoliths of various sizes set in rough ground under cloudy skies.
Callanish Stones – one of the finest stone circles in Scotland
A small round hill lies beyond a field of tall grasses. The hill is also grass covered. A small entrance way to a passage into the hill is just visible at centre and a small human figure stands on top of the elevation.
Maeshowe chambered cairn , Orkney
Various stone-lined depressions have been cut into a sward-covered area near a body of water. Some depressions are small and circular. A larger one in the foreground is semi-circular and contains various arranged piles of stones.
Jarlshof , Shetland, re-discovered in the late nineteenth century
A small, brown conical structure sits on top of wooden piers set into a body of water. Ducks paddle through the water and in the near background there is a tree-lined shore with a white square tower showing amongst the trees. Tree covered hills and grey skies dominate the far background.
Reconstructed crannog on Loch Tay
A small cluster of houses sit among trees at the base of a tall bare hill in the background.
Eildon Hill – a triple peak and hill fort
Three elaborate gold coloured torcs lie on dark red surfaces. A fourth torc is in two pieces.
The four torcs in the Stirling hoard
Steep stones steps lead down to a dark and narrow entrance cut into the side of a grassy hill. Dark wooden railings have been placed either side of the steps.
Burghead chambered well
The entrances to several small caves sit at the base of a rock cliff. Below the entrances the slope is grass-covered and braided with small paths.
Inchnadamph Caves
A black and white drawing of a complex structure resembling a sphere with several elaborately decorated part-spheres stuck to its surface. The decorations include sworls, circular shapes and wavy lines.
An example of a carved stone ball from Towie in Aberdeenshire, dated from 3200 to 2500 BC. [ 96 ]