United Kingdom

Haltadans

Stone circle in Fetlar, Shetland, Scotland

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About

Haltadans, also known as Fairy Ring or Haltadans stone circle, is a stone circle on the island of Fetlar in Shetland, Scotland. This site is a ring of 38 stones, of which 22 are still fixed in the soil, and it is 11 metres (37 ft) in diameter. Inside this is an earthen ring 7.9 metres (26 ft) in diameter, with a 1.5 metres (5 ft) gap in the southwest side. In the center of the rings are two rectangular pillars. According to Jakob Jakobsen, the name Haltadans means: "lame or limping dance". This is a reference to the legend that the circle of stones was once a circle of dancing trolls and that the two rock pillars in the centre were once a fiddler and his wife. They had fiddled and danced all night long, and, heedless of the time, were still fiddling and dancing when the sun rose and petrified them all.

Paleolithic
Mesolithic
Neolithic
Chalcolithic
Bronze Age
Iron Age
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Early Modern Period
Industrial Period
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Archaeological Features

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Religious and Ritual Structures

Stone circleEarthen ringCentral pillars
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Artistic and Decorative Features

Monuments
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Astronomical and Timekeeping Structures

Stone Alignments
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Details

Country

United Kingdom

Coordinates

60.61° N, -0.86° E