Last year as part of Magnus 900 the Mapping Magnus project took place. This was a community archaeology and research initiative which included detailed investigation of Birsay village and its surrounds.

Now members of the public can hear how the project took shape and what has been revealed.  The talk by Dr Sarah Jane Gibbon and Dan Lee is in the Birsay Community Hall on 6th June at 7:30pm. The event is free and there is no need to book.

Coastal survey during the Mapping Magnus project

Dave Reay pointing out fragments of bone at Birsay

Commissioned by Orkney Islands Council the activities were led by  the University of Highlands and Islands Archaeology Institute, exploring  the story of St Magnus and medieval Orkney. 

Excavations at Palace Village, Birsay

Dressed red sandstone that was once part of a high status building now found in walls about the village

Existing walls can show where buildings once stood

The Orkney News featured many articles covering the Mapping Magnus project. Here is a selection:

Mapping Magnus

Mapping Medieval Birsay

Exploring Orkney Archives for Birsay’s Medieval Past

Coastal Survey at Birsay

Has the Birsay Dig Found the Bishop’s Palace?

For more on the project visit www.archaeologyorkney.com.

Buckquoy Earls Palace Brough_of Birsay Ordinance survey one inch 1912 By OS [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons