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Orkney Islands Cartel ?

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This is a blog I never thought that I would be writing as an archaeologist and business owner.  I moved to Orkney with my daughter in 2016, in the search of a nicer and safer lifestyle where I could practice my profession without impediments of a saturated field and where I could raise my daughter in relative safety away from the majority of societal problems.  I chose Orkney as Orkney had the best Master’s program for the area in which I needed to run my business. It was touted as a safe and friendly place where everyone is welcomed and treated with respect.  This was certainly misselling on a large scale and since we arrived in 2016, we have experienced the hidden part of Orkney that few outsiders get to see.  The underbelly of Orkney is unpleasant and anyone who is not in some sort of protective clique gets destroyed.  It seems that feudalism is very much alive and like that proverbial rare dinosaur protected by its secluded and dense habitat, so is Orkney’s ...
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Scapa Flow Central to Military Planning for 'High North' - A Call or a Scream from the Past?

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 Scapa Flow Central to Military Planning for 'High North';  A Call or a Scream from the Past?                                                                                                                            Surgeon Commander Fairman 'Rack' Rackham-Mann                                                                                            ...
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Excavations at Clestrain Hall - The John Rae Society

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  Excavations at Clestrain Hall, Orkney   Graemsey Island taken from the steps of Clestrain Hall at the end of the 2020 excavation season. In May 2020, despite COVID-19 restrictions, we had the opportunity to help excavate the courtyard around the rear of Clestrain Hall which is a part of the overall £4 million renovation project being  undertaken by the John Rae Society.   Clestrain Hall was the childhood home of the famous explorer John Rae (30/09/1813-22/07/1893).  John Rae  was born at the Hall of Clestrain on 30th September 1813, one of nine children born to John Rae and Margaret Glen Campbell. His father, also called John, was the estate factor for the Lord Advocate of Scotland, Lord Armadale (William Honeyman) who resided in Edinburgh. As a young boy John Rea, as was the custom for young boys of his background in the 19th century, spent time hunting and shooting in the hills around the Hall or sailing in the family's boat.  His love of...
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Alice Hyde (nee Lee) The Miss Pictures Girl 1919

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                                                 Alice Hyde (aka Lavender Lee) 18/07/1894- 07/1993                                                                       The Pictures Girl  It is not often that someone gets to research a topic that sits firmly within the cultural history field as an archaeologist, more used to field excavations,  but I have been doubly honoured.   Firstly, as an opportunity to diversify my business interests and secondly to learn new skills in the process. This project started out, as sometimes projects do, as a short exercise I set ...
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