The last excursion of this cruise was to be in the Shetland Islands. We planned to visit Jar. Lshofbin the afternoon, but visited the museum and Town Hall in the morning.
Richard’s ReLive video explains our outing: https://www.relive.com/view/v7O9gpnVeQq
3.90 miles, overcast skies with afternoon sun.
People have lived in Shetland for 6000 years. Jarlshof on the far south coast has ruins aged around 4000 years. Stonework was discovered about a hundred years ago when walls were uncovered by storms.
The earliest occupation of the site dates from 2500 BC. As civilization changed, dwelling were built above previous homes. Bronze Age and Iron Age dwellings were also at Jarlshof.
Around 300 BC, the Celtic people in the north of Scotland began to build fortified towers called “Brochs.” Over the next 500 years, they built about a hundred of them. Brochs usually stand on the coast, commanding good views. Often one broch is visible from the next.
Until about AD 700 everyone who lived in Shetland was a pagan. Then priests and monks came from Scotland and Ireland to worship Jesus Christ.
These Christians made beautiful sculpture. They buried important people in shrines made of stone.this stone shows five monks coming ashore with staffs and book satchels. Grave crosses have also been found.
Between the 1460s and 1560s church and government in the islands changed completely. Shetland became Protestant instead of Catholic, and Scottish instead of Danish from around 1500, Scottish settlers began to arrive as Church ministers, merchants, and landowners. Eventually most Shetlanders became tenants of these landowners.
At Jarlshof, the most recent structures is the new hall and laird’s house, built in the style imported by new settlers from mainland Scotland.
This monument to Shetland citizens lost in WWI is across from the Town Hall.
Town Hall, with its dignified tower, has dominated the Lerwick skyline for more than a century.
Inside, its main hall boasts stained glass windows explaining historical figures and the relationship between the islands, Norway, and Scotland.
The Shetland flag keeps the colors of the Scottish flag but changes the white cross.
The beautiful coast next to Jarlshof includes this lighthouse and beach.
5 Responses
Looks like you are heading back to Europe? Do you have your full intinerary listed somewhere? Dan
We are in England now—three days in York and then we begin the Cleveland Way walk through the Moors and then the St. Oswald’s Way walk along the coast.
From our home page, you can select travels and then Iceland and it should get you to our day-to-day itinerary.
Where are the Shetland ponies?
If you look at Richard’s ReLive video, he had the ponies. We saw them quickly from our bus ride (including babies!). My post was getting way too long so I tried not to duplicate him.
You are bringing back wonderful memories of our trip, British Isle Explorer. there in 2022. Thanks. Our side trip took us to a pony farm and saw the ponies in action.