The Ness of Brodgar

Amazing finds at a neolithic village in the Orkneys called the Ness of Brodgar, including a structure with stone foundation walls more than twenty meters long that they are calling a "neolithic cathedral." Quick summary in the London Times here.

All of which raises the question, why were the Orkneys such a good place to live in the Neolithic, when they are such a lousy place to live now?

Below, the Standing Stones of Stenness, which are very close to the new dig site.