Geograph - photograph every grid square

Bostadh Iron Age Village is an ancient monument in the care of the Bernera Historical Society. For a long time it had been suspected that an ancient, lost village lay hidden under the dunes at Bostadh, for artefacts would turn up from time to time. Then in 1992 a severe storm modified the local landscape and the ancient remains began to be revealed. In order to safeguard the site, rescue excavations took place in 1996 and a total of five houses were revealed. Due to the unstable nature of the environment, it was not practicable to leave the discovered dwellings uncovered, so they were backfilled with sand such that only the outlines of three of the houses remained visible. It is thought that at least one complete house remains undisturbed for future archaeological examination.
The houses date from the late Iron Age, or Pictish period, of about 1200 to 1600 years ago (400 - 800 AD), they had double walls and were partly subterranean. The entrances were all on the southern side, no doubt to protect them from the worst winds. They all comprised a main circular room with other smaller rooms or stores radiating off from this. A hearth in the centre was stone-lined and almost certainly used to burn peat, though it is thought that the timber and turf roofs would not have had any means of egress for the smoke, so it would have been very smoky and dark inside, with the strong smell of burning peat pervading everywhere.
Although the houses themselves were covered up again, it was decided to build a faithful replica house for visitors, and it is this reconstruction which can now be seen on the site, complete with smoky peat fire. It is only open at certain times though, so if you wish to see inside, it would be best to check in advance - you could try the Bernera Historical Society (see Link
The ancient people who dwelt here certainly chose a beautiful spot - if a little chilly when a northerly gale was blowing!