The Orkney Islands lie off the north coast of Scotland. There are 70 islands, 17 of them inhabited, most of them with Norse names. One exception being the principal island called Mainland, a corruption of the Old Norse Meginland; this is where the majority of the population live. The name Orkney is a corruption of the Old Norse 'orc' - seal and 'eyjar' - island. Centuries later the 'jar' was dropped off the name. 1,000 archaeological sites have been recorded, some of them dating back to the Stone Age. One of the most famous sites is Skara Brae, a Neolithic settlement. The islands were settled by people from Norway in the 8th and 9th centuries. The ownership of the islands transferred between Norway and Scotland several times, with Orkney finally becoming annexed to the Scottish crown in about 1470.

These stone objects were found on Orkney. They are from the John Evans Collections and presented to the Museum by his son Arthur Evans:

Hammerstone (AN1927.4054)

Stone pestle (AN1927.4052)

Stone pestle (AN1927.4053)

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