For the fourth instalment of my Scottish travels, I will head as far north as it is possible to go in the British Isles, up first to Orkney and then Shetland. These locations are superbly rich in archaeology, and the magazine’s coverage reflects this. In terms of cover stories alone, they account for, by my reckoning, 12 of the so-far 396 covers, which makes them one of the most consistent stars in the 56-year history of the magazine.
As noted previously, these columns on Scotland are dedicated to the memory of Katharine MacDonald (1976-2022), an old friend, outstanding archaeologist, and proud Scotswoman who had a particular love of the Highlands and Islands.
Sights and sagas
Orkney is referred to so many times in the history of Current Archaeology that I have had to be highly selective in my sampling. If you are curious, then do a keyword search of the online archive (and if you do not subscribe to the online edition, then here is a great reason to do so: www.archaeology.co.uk/digital).
