Midhowe Broch

Midhowe Broch is an Iron Age fortified tower on the west coast of Rousay in Orkney, Scotland, dating to the last centuries BC. Strategically positioned on a narrow promontory defended by rock-cut channels and two ditches with a rampart, the broch walls survive to 4.3m but originally stood two to three times higher. Excavated in the 1930s, the interior contained stone partitions, a still-functioning spring-fed water cistern, and evidence of bronze-working and iron-smelting. It is one of nine brochs in the area, indicating this was a densely occupied region of Iron Age Orkney.