Orphir - Round Church

The Orphir Round Church was built in the late 11th or early 12th century. The current ruin is the only evidence of a medieval round church in Scotland.

The church consisted of a round nave about six metres in diameter and a two-metre wide and equally deep semi-circular apse with a central window. The walls are one metre thick. Only the apse and a small segment of the nave remain. The church survived almost entirely until 1757, when it was demolished and its stones used in the construction of the new parish church. No remains of this parish church remain.

It is thought to have been built by Haakon Paulsson (Earl of Orkney from 1103 to 1123) as penance for murdering his cousin and co-ruler Magnus Erlendsson (later Saint Magnus). According to the Orkneyinga saga, Haakon took sole power in 1117 after the killing of Magnus. The saga refers to a "large drinking-hall" with a "magnificent church" nearby. The remains of the drinking hall, known as the 'Earl's Bu', can still be seen.