"In the course of the last hundred years a score or more of these have been discovered in Orkney, varying greatly in size and design." Hugh Marwick. Ancient Monuments in Orkney. (1952) "Orkney has many prehistoric structures of another type which are still more puzzling. These are commonly called earth-houses..." J. Gunn. Orkney: The Magnetic North. (1932)

Results from the 2025 geophysical surveys suggests that the circular Iron Age structure that once stood on the Trench T midden mound could have been associated with an underground chamber.

A new Current Archaeology article, by Carly Hilts, is now available online.

A new page has been added to our "Structures" section, detailing what we now know about Structure Forty-Four - the circular building excavated in July.

On Saturday, the final day of the 2026 Orkney Archaeology Festival, we were delighted by the number of visitors to our open day in Kirkwall.

Ness open day as part of the 2026 Orkney Archaeology Festival on Saturday, September 12. 11am-3pm.

The recording of the UHI Archaeology Institute's Associate Professor Antonia Thomas' recent talk to the Orkney Archaeology Society.

The processing of environmental samples from the site has produced a second tiny bead fragment from Structure Five.

Our ongoing work at the Ness of Brodgar features in this year’s Orkney International Science Festival, which begins next Thursday, September 3.

The few pottery sherds from the 2026 excavation are decorated (incised and cordons), had an organic temper and undoubtedly derived from Grooved Ware vessels, providing a date of at least 3200BC.

A report by Time Team's Martyn Williams during the third week of the 2026 excavation.

Post-excavation work continues and has produced our third example of a child's milk tooth.

Sarah Carter on another pottery shed with stamped decoration from the midden in the vicinity of Structure Forty.

This week’s Time Team podcast, with Helen Geake and Martyn Williams sees Anne Mitchell answer more Ness-related questions.

Another 3d model from Paul Durdin, this time showing Structure Forty-Four's central hearth part way through excavation.

This week's Time Team podcast, with Helen Geake and Martyn Williams, recorded during week three of the dig, features Jackie McKinley pondering what our Neolithic building might have been and Dani Wootton's potential rock art discovery.

Last week, site director Nick was interviewed for a Time Team question-and-answer session on the Ness of Brodgar.

Hot of the digital press - a splendid new 3d model from Paul Durdin, showing the results of the 2026 excavation.

Drone photograph of Trench W on the final day of the 2026 excavation.

A couple of discoveries on our last day on site.

The last dig diary ever. Famous last words...

Structure Forty‑Four’s buttresses proved primary; its entrance was deliberately blocked. New walls revealed Structure Forty‑Five, an elaborate doorway and a fine spatulate tool.

Structure Forty‑Four’s entrance, hearth and flooring clarified, but a late‑day curving wall raises eyebrows.

Drone's eye view of Structure Forty-Four this afternoon.

We suspected it was there and the entrance was confirmed today. And may be much bigger than expected!

Week three drew to a close in typical Ness style - with a decorated stone...

Hearth deposits were shallow, more foundation slabs emerged, and excavation confirmed a surrounding gully - all adding to our structure's "very odd” character.

A 3d model of Joanne Greave's reconstructed pot from Structure Thirty-Four.

Another very productive day on site with excavation in and around the remains of our new building.

A photogrammetry model from Paul Durdin showing one group of prehistoric ard marks in Trench W.

A drain, a hearth and clarifying the story of our new structure.

Today, we can say with confidence that we are looking at a hearth at the centre of a Late Neolithic building in Trench W.

Following its world premiere in Orkney earlier this month, Time Team's Ness of Brodgar special will go live to the public at 7pm tonight.

Today's update from the end of week two.

Work to uncover the final trench quadrant - the north-western one - got under way today, revealing another small section of the circular anomaly.

A shorter diary than usual because it's been full steam ahead in the trench today.

Trench TT yielded fresh clues today, including a projecting orthostat, yellow clay layers and a fragment of Grooved Ware pottery.

Another bright, busy day saw new orthostats emerge within the circular anomaly, continued rubble removal along the trench edge, fresh planning and sampling — plus a fleeting false alarm over a “stone axe.”

Our three-day Big Ness Lego Build ended today and has been hailed a resounding success.

Week one draws to a close and what a productive one it's been.

Today's update from Trench TT as we near the end of week one.

As work continued, the third example of an Early Neolithic leaf arrowhead emerged from Trench TT.

A far more forgiving day, weather‑wise, saw the cleaning of the new trench completed and excavation begin.

The new trench is opened, cleaned (nearly) and we're all set to go.

We’re back on site tomorrow to investigate an intriguing circular feature revealed by the Time Team ground-penetrating radar (GPR) survey in July 2025.

A virtual, online version of 2022's 'The World of Stonehenge' exhibition is now available to explore.

As part of their ongoing Stenness Past, Present and Future project, our education officer Katy Firth has been helping Stenness Primary School pupils get hands-on with Ness-related topics.

Some of Orkney's tour guides were back on site on Wednesday for a special show-and-tell from site director Nick Card.

A film by UHI MA Contemporary Art and Archaeology graduate Lucy Carr-McClave is one of the finalists in the 2026 West Lothian Film Festival awards.

Our 2026 pottery triage project is now into its fourth week and this morning Heather hit the jackpot with another Neolithic fingerprint.