Glossary · Term

Broch

c. 400 BCE–100 CE · 5th century BCE

A broch is a type of Iron Age drystone tower found in northern and western Scotland, especially in Caithness, Orkney and Shetland. Built mostly between about 400 BCE and 100 CE, brochs have hollow double walls containing stairs and galleries. The best preserved, at Mousa in Shetland, still stands about 13 metres high.

Broch
Image: Colin Smith · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons

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Cite this entry
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). Broch. In The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/broch
MLA
“Broch.” The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/broch. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “Broch.” The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/broch.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Broch’, The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/broch (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random entry ↻