<Why would one in those days, when excavations and stonework involved so much backache and sweat, would someone choose to bury their canine comrades in a fashion that mimics an Egyptian royal?> Interring the skulls of various animals most likely had a ritual purpose. I realise these are Neolithic remains, but if you think forward to the Picts, their symbol stones feature all manner of creatures along with the more obscure symbols, in keeping with their close relationship with the natural environment. And there's one theory that says the Orcadian Picts were actually descended from the Neolithic inhabitants of the islands. It's highly likely the Neolithic people of Orkney had a faith and ritual observance closely tied the elements, the seasons, heavenly phenomena etc, so a representative sample of animal skulls is perhaps not so surprising. Juliet