Midhowe Chambered Cairn is a large Neolithic chambered cairn
located on the south shore of the island of Rousay, Orkney, Scotland. The name
"Midhowe" comes from the Iron Age broch known as Midhowe Broch, that
lies just west of the tomb. The broch got its name from the fact that it's the
middle of three such structures that lie grouped within 500 metres (1,600 ft)
of each other and Howe from the Old Norse word haugr meaning mound or barrow.
Together, the broch and chambered cairn form part of a large complex of ancient
structures on the shore of Eynhallow Sound separating Rousay from Mainland,
Orkney.
The tomb is a particularly well preserved example of the Orkney-Cromarty
type of chambered cairn. Tombs of this type are often referred to as
"stalled" cairns due to their distinctive internal structure. Stalled
cairns have a central passageway flanked by a series of paired transverse
stones that separate the side spaces into compartments that reminded early
investigators of horse stalls. Sources
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