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Maeshowe
 Street address: Stenness, Orkney KW16 3HA, Scotland, United Kingdom
Telephone: 44 (0) 1856 761606
Mailing address: Skara Brae Prehistoric Village, Sandwick, Stromness, Orkney KW16 3LR, Scotland, United Kingdom
Telephone: 44 (0) 1856 841815
Fax: 44 (0) 1856 841885
E-mail: [email protected]
Proprietor: Historic Scotland - one of three sites which collectively comprise the Heart of Neolithic Orkney World Heritage Site
Contact: Mary Dunnett Monument Manager
Telephone: [email protected]
Opening hours: Apr-Sep: 9.30am-6.30pm daily; Oct-Mar: 9.30am-4.30pm daily
Admission: £5 adult, £2.50 child, £4 concessions includes access to Tormiston Mill, admission by Timed Ticketing, see below
Accessibility: Partial disabled access
Part of the Heart of Neolithic Orkney World Heritage Site, Maeshowe is a Neolithic chambered cairn and passage grave situated on mainland Orkney. Along with the Skara Brae Prehistoric Village and the Standing Stones of Stenness and Ring of Brodgar Stone Circle, it was designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1999.
Believed to have been constructed in around 2500 BCE, Maeshow chambered cairn bears no similarities to any other known chambered cairn design, either in Orkney or elsewhere.
Maeshowe was broken into in the mid-12th century by Viking raiders who carved graffiti runes on the walls of the main chamber. There are over 30 individual inscriptions, the largest collection in the world.
Nearby Tormiston Mill functions as the Visitors' Centre for Maeshow; since the total number of visitors that can be accommodated at Maeshowe is limited, admission is by Timed Ticketing; visitors reserve a specific time for the start of their tour from the reception area at Tormiston Mill, and on the day of the intended visit, tickets are collected at the Mill.
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