The Ancient Codex Knock on the door of the past

Fortified place · Iron Age · Shetland Islands

Broch of West Burrafirth

The Broch of West Burrafirth stands on a low rocky islet known as the Holm of Hebrista, within West Burra Firth on the west side of Shetland Mainland. Reaching it requires a boat or, at very low tide, a walk across the exposed ground.

The Broch of West Burrafirth stands on a low rocky islet known as the Holm of Hebrista, within West Burra Firth on the west side of Shetland Mainland. Reaching it requires a boat or, at very low tide, a walk across the exposed ground. Traces of a causeway once linked the islet to the shore, though it is no longer readily apparent.

What remains today is a ruin heavy with fallen debris. The entrance passage is choked with stones, yet the lintel spanning its inner end still holds its place, and on either side of the passage a pair of guard cells can be made out. Within the thickness of the wall, four mural cells survive, two of them built to a dumb-bell plan, each pair of chambers linked by a short connecting passage. The site is protected today as a scheduled monument.

What follows is drawn from published sources, with each claim labelled by how firmly it is established.

The name

The firth in which the broch stands took the Norse name Borgarfjörð, 'the fjord of the borg', after the broch itself — borg being the Norse word for such a fortified structure. The old name Borgarfjörð occurs in a document written in Norse and dated 1299.

History

The broch was built and occupied during the Iron Age on the Holm of Hebrista, a rocky islet in West Burra Firth reachable only by boat or, at the lowest tides, on foot; a causeway is understood to have once connected it to the shore.

By the Norse period the firth had taken the name Borgarfjörð, the 'fjord of the borg', after the broch standing within it. The Orkneyinga saga records that during the joint rule of Magnus Erlendsson and Hákon Paulsson, who governed and defended their lands together for some time and agreed very well with one another, their followers slew a man named Þorbjörn in Borgarfjörð in Hjaltland. It is probable that Þorbjörn's connection with Borgarfjörð/Burra Firth lay in the shelter and defensive position the broch offered him and his followers.

The old name Borgarfjörð appears in a document written in the Norse language and dated 1299, showing that the fjord — and the broch that gave it its name — was already established in local usage by the close of the 13th century. In the 18th century the antiquarian George Low visited the broch and recorded a number of cells in the base of the wall, noting that above them a hollow, galleried wall began. The broch survives today as a scheduled monument, its structure reduced to a ruin of fallen debris but with its ground-floor cells, blocked entrance passage, and inner lintel still legible on the ground.

People

  • Magnus Erlendsson

    Named in the Orkneyinga saga as ruling jointly with Hákon Paulsson; their followers slew Þorbjörn in Borgarfjörð, the firth named for this broch.

  • Hákon Paulsson

    Named in the Orkneyinga saga as ruling Shetland jointly with Magnus Erlendsson, the two agreeing very well with one another.

  • Þorbjörn

    A man the Orkneyinga saga records as having been slain in Borgarfjörð (Burra Firth), his presence there probably explained by the shelter the broch offered.

  • George Low

    18th-century antiquarian who visited the broch and recorded its base-of-wall cells and galleried wall construction.

Cultural influences

  • A Norse name preserved by the broch

    The Old Norse name Borgarfjörð, ‘fjord of the borg’, was applied to the firth after the broch. Its survival in a document of 1299 shows that the tower had shaped the local place-name long after its Iron Age use.

Connections

  • Orkneyinga saga

    The saga records the slaying of Þorbjörn in Borgarfjörð, the Norse name for Burra Firth that was derived from the broch standing in it.

Discovery & excavation

The earliest detailed record of the broch's structure comes from the 18th-century antiquarian George Low, who visited the site and noted a number of cells in the base of the wall, stating that a hollow, galleried wall began above them.

In culture

  • Orkneyinga Saga

    The broch is remembered indirectly in the Orkneyinga saga's account of Earls Magnus Erlendsson and Hákon Paulsson, which records the slaying of Þorbjörn in Borgarfjörð — the fjord named for the broch itself.

What to look for

  • Blocked entrance passage

    The entrance is blocked with stones, though the lintel over its inner end is still apparent.

  • Guard cells

    Two guard cells flank the blocked entrance passage, one on either side, showing how access to the broch was controlled.

  • Mural cells

    Four mural cells survive within the wall thickness; two are dumb-bell shaped, with a short passage linking the two halves of each cell.

  • The Holm of Hebrista

    The broch occupies its own tidal islet in West Burra Firth, with traces of a former causeway to the shore no longer readily visible.

Plan your visit

Location
60.2982°N · 1.5382°W
Access
Open access
Terrain
Moderate walking
Time needed
About 90 minutes

Nearby places

Tomb or burial place · Prehistoric

Punds Water

Shetland Islands

Above the peat near Mangaster, in Northmavine on Shetland's Mainland, a low mound of large boulders rises about 1.5 metres from the surrounding gro…

  • Easy path

The setting

  • The Holm of Hebrista in West Burra Firth, the tidal islet on which the broch stands.

    Photo: Robert Sandison / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 2.0

  • West Burra Firth and the Holm of Hebrista seen across a stone wall near the broch.

    Photo: Mike Pennington / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 2.0

  • South House and farm buildings at West Burrafirth, near the broch’s tidal islet.

    Photo: Mike Pennington / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 2.0

  • West Burrafirth harbour and slipway near the Holm of Hebrista.

    Photo: Philip Cornwall / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 2.0

Questions people ask

What is the Broch of West Burrafirth?
It is a ruined Iron Age broch on the west side of Mainland, Shetland, standing on a low rocky islet called the Holm of Hebrista in West Burra Firth (grid reference HU25625720). It is a scheduled monument.
How is the broch reached?
The islet it stands on is inaccessible without a boat, except at very low tide when it can be reached on foot. A causeway is thought to have once connected the islet to the shore, though it is no longer readily apparent.
What survives of the structure?
The broch is ruined and covered with fallen debris. The entrance passage is blocked with stones but its inner lintel still stands, two guard cells flank the entrance, and four mural cells survive within the wall, two of them dumb-bell shaped.
What is the connection to the Orkneyinga saga?
The saga records that Earls Magnus Erlendsson and Hákon Paulsson, ruling jointly, had a man named Þorbjörn slain in Borgarfjörð — 'the fjord of the borg' — a name given to West Burra Firth on account of this broch. A document dated 1299 also uses the old name Borgarfjörð.
Who first documented the broch's interior?
The 18th-century antiquarian George Low visited the site and recorded cells in the base of the wall, noting that a hollow, galleried wall began above them.

Sources

  1. Canmore site 371
  2. Broch of West Burrafirth - Wikipedia
  3. Broch of West Burrafirth - Wikidata

Explore more: Fortified places · Iron Age · Shetland Islands

The Ancient Codex, in your pocket

Get the Pocket Codex app

Carry the directory with you — Broch of West Burrafirth and thousands of ancient places across Britain and Ireland, offline, wherever you roam.

Get the app →