Editing Maeshowe (section)

==Design and construction==
Maeshowe is one of the largest tombs in Orkney; the mound encasing the tomb is {{convert|115|ft|m}} in diameter and rises to a height of {{nobr|{{convert|24|ft|m}}.}}<ref>{{Harvnb|Childe|Simpson|1952|p=18}}</ref> Surrounding the mound, at a distance of {{nobr|{{convert|50|ft|m}} }} to {{nobr|{{convert|70|ft|m}} }} is a ditch up to {{nobr|{{convert|45|ft|m}} }} wide. The grass mound hides a complex of passages and chambers built of carefully crafted slabs of [[flagstone]] weighing up to 30&nbsp;tons.<ref name=Lost-Worlds-2006-Pagans-s1-e12/> It is aligned so that the rear wall of its central chamber<ref>{{Harvnb|Dargie|2007|p=12}}</ref> is illuminated on the [[winter solstice]].<ref>{{Harvnb|Hedges|1984|p=160}}</ref> A similar display occurs in [[Newgrange]].

[[File:Maes Howe Cross Sections.gif|200px|right|thumb|Cross-sections of Maeshowe]]
This entrance passage is {{convert|36|ft|m}} long and leads to the central almost square chamber measuring around {{convert|15|ft|m}} on each side.<ref>{{Harvnb|Childe|Simpson|1952|pages=18–19}}</ref> The current height of the chamber is {{nobr|{{convert|12.5|ft|m}},}} this reflects the height to which the original stonework is preserved and capped by a modern [[corbelled]] roof. The original roof may have risen to a height of {{convert|15|ft|m}} or more.<ref>Ritchie (1995) p 59</ref> The entrance passage is only around {{nobr|{{convert|3|ft|m}}}} high, requiring visitors to stoop or crawl into the central chamber. That chamber is constructed largely of flat slabs of stone, many of which traverse nearly the entire length of the walls. In each corner lie huge angled buttresses that rise to the vaulting. At a height of around {{convert|3|ft|m}}, the wall's construction changes from the use of flat to overlapping slabs creating a beehive-shaped vault.<ref>Castleden (1987) pp 176–177</ref>

Estimates of the amount of effort required to build Maeshowe vary; a commonly suggested number is 39,000&nbsp;man-hours,<ref>Hedges (1984) p 113</ref><ref>Castleden (1987) p 212</ref> although [[Colin Renfrew]] calculated that at least 100,000&nbsp;hours would be required.<ref>Renfrew (1979) pp 212–214</ref> Dating of the construction of Maeshowe is difficult but dates derived from burials in similar tombs cluster around 3000&nbsp;BC. Since Maeshowe is the largest and most sophisticated example of the Maeshowe "type" of tomb, archaeologists have suggested that it is the last of its class, built around 2800&nbsp;BC.<ref>Ritchie (1981) p 29</ref> The people who built Maeshowe were users of [[grooved ware]],<ref>Renfrew (1985) p 7</ref> a distinctive type of pottery that spread throughout the British Isles around 3000&nbsp;BC.