Egilsay is famous as the site of the martyrdom of St Magnus, and for the church that still stands on the site, with its unusual round tower. Egilsay may refer to the personal name Egil (Egil's Island) or to Gaelic eagles, meaning church. It was the…
St Magnus Church, founded at the site of the killing of Saint Magnus Erlendsson, Earl of Orkney by an axe-blow to the head in ca. 1116 at the orders of his cousin Hákon Pálsson. This episode, referred to in Orkneyinga saga, is possibly corroborated…
Photo of the street sign 'Olaf's Wynd' in Kirkwall, Orkney. Wynd is a placename element from the Norse verb venda, meaning 'to turn' or 'to wind'. St Olaf refers to the Norwegian king Ólafr Haraldsson, who reigned from 1015 to 1028 and was…
St Magnus Church, founded at the site of the killing of Saint Magnus Erlendsson, Earl of Orkney by an axe-blow to the head in ca. 1116 at the orders of his cousin Hákon Pálsson. This episode, referred to in Orkneyinga saga, is possibly corroborated…
The round 'Kirk' at Orphir was built in the late eleventh or early twelfth century, possibly by Earl Hakon. It was dedicated to Saint Nicholas and its round style is based on the Ecclesia Sancti Sepulchri in Jerusalem: a fashion probably brought home…
Maeshowe is a neolithic burial mound and chambered cairn on the mainland island of Orkney. Its connection to the Vikings (or Norse in Orkney) is the fact that the chamber was looted and used as a shelter on various occasions, as attested by the…
Image taken on the Orkney Viking Heritage Project Field Trip of the interior of St. Magnus Cathedral, Kirkwall. The Cathedral was founded by Earl Rögnvaldr of Orkney in 1137.