CAIRN

Cairn

A cairn is a man-made pile of stones. The word cairn comes from the . Cairns are found all over the world in uplands, on moorland, on mountaintops, near waterways and on sea cliffs, and also in barren desert and tundra areas. They vary in size from small stone markers to entire artificial hills, and in complexity from loose, conical rock piles to delicately balanced sculptures and elaborate feats of megalithic engineering. Cairns may be painted or otherwise decorated, e.g. for increased visibility or for religious reasons.

The above text is a snippet from Wikipedia: Cairn
and as such is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

cairn

Noun

  1. A rounded or conical heap of stones erected by early inhabitants of the British Isles, apparently as a sepulchral monument.
    Now here let us place the gray stone of her cairn. -Campbell.
  2. A pile of stones heaped up as a landmark, to guide travelers on land or at sea, or to arrest attention, as in surveying, or in leaving traces of an exploring party, etc.
  3. A cairn terrier.


The above text is a snippet from Wiktionary: cairn
and as such is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

Need help with a clue?
Try your search in the crossword dictionary!