Cairn o'Get

Cairn o’ Get stands on a low ridge near Ulbster in Caithness, northern Scotland. A Neolithic chambered cairn, it was first opened in 1866 and dates from about 5,000 years ago. The site is known locally as Garrywhin and takes the unusual form of a short, double-horned cairn. An older round cairn was later built over, and the chamber now sits slightly off-centre within it. The distinctive façade has not survived. The missing capstones let visitors see the interior clearly. A low entrance on the south side forces anyone entering to crawl on hands and knees. Beyond lies a small antechamber framed by two tall portal stones, which opens into the main chamber. The chamber walls are made of thin slabs and small packing stones, forming a rounded polygonal shape. Excavators found it filled with earth and stones, and near the floor lay many burnt and unburnt human and animal bones, flint tools, and broken pottery. Cairn o’ Get belongs to a wider group of prehistoric monuments scattered between Loch of Yarrows and Loch of Watenan. These include beehive huts, brochs, burial mounds, forts, standing stones, and stone rows. The later rebuilding of the cairn appears to have no practical purpose, suggesting a shift in beliefs during its use.