The vagaries of the weather did not deter crowds of well wishers, locals and visitors, coming together on Sunday 31 May to celebrate the official opening of the Tomb of the Eagles, visitor experience.
The Tomb of the Eagles is a Neolithic burial tomb discovered by Ronnie Simison on his farm in South Ronaldsay in 1958. Over the years Ronnie, his wife Morgan and his children found out more about the tomb and of the people who had lived and worked his land thousands of years ago. They welcomed visitors to the site and explained what they had discovered. The shared joy of their discoveries left many happy memories in the minds of those who visited the Tomb of the Eagles.
During covid the Tomb was closed and it was thought it might never re-open, however, in stepped South Ronaldsay and Burray Development Trust and a growing band of volunteers. What we have now is the first Community owned scheduled ancient monument with future ambitious plans to enhance the facilities on offer.
Sunday was the official opening. Fittingly it was Ronnie and Morgan’s daughters, Freida and Cathleen who performed the opening ceremony and cut the ribbon. The whole day was a great experience for all ages. As well as guided tours of the Tomb, there were local crafts available to purchase in a marquee, Brough Bakes mobile catering van, Hrossey Raptors, and a range of activities being provided by experimental archaeologists.
The Orkney News was there to join in with the event and you can watch a short video of the opening ceremony here or on our YouTube channel.
For more information about visiting the Tomb of The Eagles click on this link: Tomb of the Eagles.
And here is a link to the visit we made earlier:
Fiona Grahame
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