The Bay of Skaill is a small bay on the west coast of the Orkney

Orkney Islands

Orkney also known as the Orkney Islands , is an archipelago in northern Scotland, situated north of the coast of Caithness...

 Mainland, Scotland

Scotland

Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...

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Visitor attractions

Bay of Skaill is the location of the famous Neolithic

Neolithic

The Neolithic Age, Era, or Period, or New Stone Age, was a period in the development of human technology, beginning about 9500 BC in some parts of the Middle East, and later in other parts of the world. It is traditionally considered as the last part of the Stone Age...

 settlement, Skara Brae

Skara Brae

Skara Brae is a large stone-built Neolithic settlement, located on the Bay of Skaill on the west coast of Mainland, Orkney, Scotland. It consists of ten clustered houses, and was occupied from roughly 3180 BCE–2500 BCE...

, and a large residence, Skaill House, the property of the laird on whose estate Skara Brae was discovered. Skaill House has connections with Captain James Cook

James Cook

Captain James Cook, FRS, RN was a British explorer, navigator and cartographer who ultimately rose to the rank of captain in the Royal Navy...

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Skaill Viking hoard

In March 1858, a boy named David Linklater was digging at Muckle Brae, near the Sandwick

Sandwick, Orkney

Sandwick is a parish on the west coast of Mainland, Orkney. It commences four miles north of Stromness.The coast, except at the small sandy bay consists of cavernous cliffs, from 100-200 ft, and includes a lofty natural arch called the hole of Rowe, and is much flanked by insulated...

 parish church, when he came across a few pieces of silver lying in the earth. Astounded by the find, Linklater was soon joined by a number of folk. Together they unearthed over one hundred items. This hoard is the largest Viking

Viking

The term Viking is customarily used to refer to the Norse explorers, warriors, merchants, and pirates who raided, traded, explored and settled in wide areas of Europe, Asia and the North Atlantic islands from the late 8th to the mid-11th century.These Norsemen used their famed longships to...

treasure trove found so far in Scotland.