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Translation

The TMA translation of Bryn Celli Ddu is a little lacking, so language experts Sheila Thorn and Jill Evans were approached for help.

Sheila is freshly returned from teaching at Oxford, whilst Jill hails from near the site.

The reply was:

"Well, your email has been circulated and discussed by Jill, her mother, her best friend and a Welsh speaker in the pub and it's Black Grove Hill/Mound.

Your pronunciation was fine. [brin kethlee dhee] The double –ll is pronounced as a cle (i.e. opening your mouth and putting your tongue up to the top of your mouth and blowing air out via your cheeks) and the Ddu is pronounced as thee, but with the tongue kept pressed behind your two front teeth, rather than removed immediately, as when an English person says thee.

Jill has known about that mound all her life, as she's from Llanrwst and often used to go to Anglesea. She loved the photos she found on the Internet."

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Posted by MartinStraw
17th March 2010ce

Part 2- Devils Ring and Finger

Well, everyone knows there really isn't much to see in the West Midlands (apart from grassy lumps) and being stationed in Wolverhampton means quite a drive to EVERYTHING. Now that my Google Earth application is up and running, I decide to see if I can find anything about an hour away thats actually worth the petrol and find Devil's Ring and Finger near Market Drayton. BRILLIANT!

21.12.09 and the M6 is blocked. Something about widening lanes or extra stopping places or wasting money so the journey takes 2 hours instead and its getting dark. I have some instructions from TMA and get to Mucklestone only to spend twilight driving round in circles and swearing at my stearing wheel. Apparently I read the instructions WRONG because its not even in Mucklestone! I end up (by default, no kind of divine intervention) in Norton in Hales and ask someone if they would possibly know where to find the Devil's Rind and Finger... HE DOES!!! Great directions get us to the farm, but where do we go from here??? I few good knocks on the door and a bit of hanging around (getting darker!!) and the dear old dear points us in the right direction.

Fabulous.

Its apparently not where it was originally and is propped up against a fence near a small woodland. Its a shame really, but I found it much more impressive than Men an Tol (I could actually squeeze myself through this one rather than spectate my skinny friends climbing through!). Worth the journey if you're in the area. I have put instructions on the correct page so you can find your way there!

And then it was Christmas, so no stones for a few weeks...

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Posted by faerygirl
2nd March 2010ce

Belas Knap and Bryn Celli Ddu

Belas Knap and Bryn Celli Ddu

Both of these barrows have special standing stones inside a covered chamber.

The small standing stones within Belas Knap are unusual, since they have seven dowsable horizontal bands, whereas most stones of this size only have five. These can be verified by a sensitive magnetometer.

The free-standing stone within Bryn Celli Ddu is unusual, since it is a fossilised tree trunk, showing horizontal cut marks, made while the tree was still alive. This was probably caused by an animal claw, since fossilising wood is usually too slow for it to have been done by human hand.

We deduce that free-standing stones, surrounded by a chamber, are deliberately chosen on the basis of rare characteristics, which were obvious to neolithic peoples, but not so obvious to us.

The unique nature of the Bryn Celli Ddu menhir was only noticed when the inside of the mound was being filmed, requiring very bright lighting, making tiny surface details readily apparent.

The unusual nature of the Belas Knap menhirs was only noticed when dowsers crawled to into the mound and experimented in the gloom.

Sometimes erosion knocks out obvious deductions.

Bryn Celli Ddu is built upon three concentric circles of upright stones, which makes perfect sense as a barrow, but when the earth has been removed, the remaining circles are mystifying. Hence the people filming Bryn Celli Ddu also filmed the concentric circles on Dartmoor without realising their purpose.

This illustrates the value of a multi-disciplinary approach, where archaeology, geology, dowsing and physics combine to reveal a previously unknown aspect of our heritage.

The threads of this argument were brought together from the following sources:

(1) '' Standing With Stones'' DVD by Michael Bott & Rupert Soskin
(2) '' Disciplines Of Dowsing'' Liz Poraj Wilczynska and Tom Graves
(3) '' Barrows in England and Wales '' by Lesley Grinsell
(4) '' The Modern Antiquarian '' by Julian Cope
(5) '' Dartmoor Atlas of Antiquities '' by Jeremy Butler

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Posted by MartinStraw
28th February 2010ce

2010; The Year O Many Stanes!

Actually, it starts in October 2009 when, on a glorious Thursday I decided I wanted to go to Kilpeck Church and visit the Sheela Na Gig; a carving from around 1130 of a haggard woman holding open her vagina (odd for a church, but there you go). While in that area, I figured we could see what else was nearby and that is how I happened upon the Google Earth-TMA application! Well, theres no turning back now is there :)

We opted for Arthurs Stone and Four Stones, both beautiful and easy to get to from Kilpeck while its still light. Beautiful. Arthurs Stone is much bigger than I expected and has a beautiful spot even if you can practically park your car on it! The sun came out long enough for me to feel its warmth before leaping back in the car a driving like a mad woman through the country lanes to get to Four Stones (easily found once I stopped mistaking cows for stones...)

Ah, I have the taste for it now; just lacking finances...

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Posted by faerygirl
27th February 2010ce

Three Go Cold in the Peaky Bits; or, How to Fondle Old Grey Ladies in Shamanic Trousers!

Three Go Cold in the Peaky Bits;
or,
How to Fondle Old Grey Ladies in Shamanic Trousers!

The following narrative is a somewhat edited version (i.e., toned down) of a 4½-part story, first unleashed on the renowned Avebury Forum site (Sun 29th – Mon 30th Nov, 2009) after we'd been taken on a guided tour to see some of the countless prehistoric sites in and around Derbyshire and the borders of southern Yorkshire, by our intrepid stone-hunter, MegaDread the First! Beginning on Hallam Moors west of Sheffield, we were then taken into the Derbyshire uplands by night to the Barbrook sites; and finally shown just a few of the numerous megalithic remains around the Harthill Moor and Birchover region.

Friday, 27th November, 2009:

The following short narrative tells the tale of where MegaDread took me n' Mikki a short while back, where we not only got to see a number of sites that I'd only previously read abaat, but were very fortunate in coming across yet more previously unrecognized prehistoric sites! Will it ever end!?

Cos Nature's only got a few hours light at this time o' year (and public transport from Keighley to Sheffield takes a bloody aeon! ), we only managed to get a quick scan of some sites on the moors west of Sheffield on the first day: but that there Ash Cabin Flat circle is a lovely site. I'd have to say it's more a ring-cairn than a true stone circle, but it's in a lovely setting. There seemed to be several other seemingly prehistoric cairns scattered on the same moorland plain around this ring (are they in the archaeo-listings?), but the light was fading quick, the rain was falling & we couldn't get any decent images.

After seeing the remains of what Stubob reckons are the remains of a 'long cist' at Reddicar Clough about a quarter-mile further on, we then stumbled half-blind in the dark over Hallam Moor to one of Geoff's finds: a bloody excellent-looking standing stone that seems to have escaped the attention of all previous archaeology surveys. By this time, nightfall was pitch-black all round us and any photos of this 4ft tall standing stone would have been worthless (he sez, pissed-off!). Couldn't really work out if there was any walling in line with it, or any cairn material - but unless something really obvious can stand out & tell us otherwise, we've gotta add this particular site to any future gazetteer listing of standing stones. Simple as!

I was all for bedding down and roughing-it right next to this old stone, but the Megaliths of Elsewhere called to drag us upon higher and darker moorland realms....

So Geoff and Mikki wandered off the dark moors back to the car, whilst I, errrrmmmm.... took a quick 5-minute break.

END OF PART 1!

PART 2 -

.....The groovy majesty of the Big Moor and those well-known megalithic rings of Barbrook 1 & 2 called us next.

Geoff took us stumbling o'er the darkened boggy heaths (where those quiet calls of distant sheep lulled me o'er the wind) and, though visibility on the ground wasn't too good, we reached Barbrook 1 pretty quick. I thought it'd be a bit bigger than it actually was (reading all those books & essays can give you completely false ideas about places!), but the setting under the gradually emerging moon was damn good. The strange kerbed-cairn above it would probably have had summat to do with the circle, but god knows what! And after seeing about a half-dozen more of these types of cairns, sussed-out that the ancestors who built 'em seemed a little more advanced than my local cairn-builders raand Yorkshire, who's cairn-tombs don't seem to have the same finesse! I reckon the Derbyshire doods must've been a bit more Upper Class than their more primitive Yorkshire tomb-builders!

Then we hit Barbrook 2! What a very odd place this seemed. It reminded me of some settlement system, but with the internal tombs, and an edging of upright standing stones round the inner ring of walling, left me nicely puzzled! Then Geoff uttered those sacred words: "There's some rock-art on one of the stones!"

The wind was carrying the distant 'Baaah...' of a sheep or 3, and I quickly ran off to satisfy my urges. It didn't take long - and with my energies revived, I was shown the simple cup-markings on the small broken stone. I stroked it, rubbed it, massaged it, talked sweetly to its gentle undulations, began to breathe more heavily again..... and quickly ran to find my loving sheep, one last time...

AHEM!!! Then we cut back a little of the overgrowth of grass and got some nice images (he sez hopefully!). With any luck, Geoff'll pop 'em on TNA (or elsewhere), so you can see what's wot. I was all for bedding-down here, in Barbrook 2, under the great ring of the Moon that shone above us. But Geoff was 'aving none of it. We had to get closer to some other old sites, more impressive than these (he said). So back we trundled to his van, drove thru darkened lanes and eventually bedded down beneath a soaking-sky, awakened to be piss-wet-thru and cold the following morning.

Another day and more sites were beckoning it seemed...

END OF PART 2

- INTERLUDE-

Twas a truly damp and cold morning! Me n' Mikki had spent half the nite being rained-on and awoke in puddles, wet sleeping bags - and mi trousers (which I'd taken-off the previous nite under a sky of scattered cloud and crystal stars) were bloody saturated! Twas a dilemma: do I put them back on, cold and wet, and shiver like fuck for an hour, or wander the hills without mi trousers on for half the day!?

The choice wasn't difficult. When we got out to visit the next site, some tourists looked-on, agog, as I walked past them saying 'Hello', with no trousers on. Mi portion was dangling down to mi knees and Mikki was chasing me (black stockings & the usual attire) here and there over the field with a long stick, telling me I'd been a "naughty boy." Geoff looked a bit freaked-out by it all at first, but he seemed to quickly get into the swing o' things. He got the camcorder out and video'd us running about with nowt on. All the tourists quickly buggered-off, which left us the place all to ourselves (it's a technique we've used a few times to clear a place!)

I then put mi trousers on and got on with the day's megalith hunting!

- END OF INTERLUDE -

PART 3 -

Up a single-track winding country lane, Geoff drove, until before the eyes of our enfeebled shivering bodies awoke the shape of Robin Hood's Stride: a craggy twin tower of rocks, holding the sky behind it, with a sturdy look of myths about it.

This looked to be our first port of call. Me and my shamanic trousers (still soaking wet, -10 degrees and falling) staggered out towards the rocks, but Geoff pointed elsewhere and we headed down-field. This was our first visit to the lovely-looking ring of stones of Nine Stone Close. There's only four left, mind. But it seems a few others had been moved and lurked in walls and undergrowth. One near-certain stood in the wall just 100 yards away, fat and well-worn by a millenium of weathering at the very least. Twas a nice spot this. Walking round it, still freezing, Geoff pointed out how the twin towers of Robin Hood's abode held the circle in some astronomical alignment - apparently.

"Midsummer moonrise or summat?" I asked. But he wasn't sure. But old John Barnatt told it to be a "midsummer full moon maximum" in his old stone circle book. Not sure if he still thinks the same though.

Geoff wandered here and there, heading towards stones in walls and other inane features; but as we walked down-field, away from the Stride, his nose sniffed out a curious marking or two on one of the small stones in the walling. Was this a cup-marking he saw before him? It certainly seemed so! At least two cups, well-worn, etched onto the surface of a single small rock, typical of the sort you find in many an old cairn. One of them there 'portables' as they're known to those who breathe rock-art! It looked the part. Only thing missing was a cairn from which it came.

But in the field below was a curious massive spoil of rocks, scattered over a diameter of some 20 yards. Large rocks seemed to embank one edge, with a mass of smaller stones, typical of cairn-material, scattered about all round. Much of it was covered in tons of cow-shit, so we didn't rummage abaat too much. But p'raps the portable cup-stone in the walling above once lived here? We could do with knowing the field-name to see if that throws owt up; or mebbe just the archaeohistorical records.

From here we headed to the great rocks of Robin Hood's Stride. Cup-marks seemed to cover some of the surfaces near the top - but most seemed natural. One with a strange, almost square 'ring' caught my eye. One of those 'possibles' (I'll stick it on-line later). After some considerable rummaging abaat, Geoff shouted us over to the eastern edge, where he'd been looking for some carving to get me all sheepish again! Staggering down we eventually clapped our eyes on a near-perfect deep 'ring' cut into the rock, more than a foot across.

I dunno why, but it did nowt for me. Mi trousers had calmed down by now; mi shivering was getting pretty minimal; and a large ring like this would - you'd think - get me into animal-mode again. But it didn't.

"That's recent!" - I said, indignantly. Not an old carving. No way!

So we decided to wander back to the van and get summat to eat. On the way back though, Mikki & Geoff came across a coupla cup-markings, "one with a faint ring round it." I missed it completely though, as I'd wandered off - my attention caught by another large rock with a pool on top. I drank some of the fresh rain-water in the bowl, slid down the big stone-face, and wibbled off towards the van, totally oblivious that I'd missed out on what Mikki & Geoff had espied. But did they get any photos of this 'ere ringed-cup? Nope!

And so, to the Undle Stone we trundled: a big boulder, 'pon a hill, overlooking the land and calling its sights as far as the legendary Minninglow, miles to the west(ish). Then daan the slope to the small overgrown, and nearly overlooked stone ring of Doll Tor. A truly curious little site, seemingly hidden away in feeling. A known tomb sits on its edge, but it seemed another of very similar form was only yards away in the woods. And - yet again - we found what seemed to be another of those portable cup-markings; but this time it'd been picked up and moved into a make-shift firebreak in the trees. So I sat it back into the tomb from whence it, most probably, first came. (images forthcoming)
But that wasn't the end of the day. Oh no! Geoff had left the best till last. Was that the faint call of a shepherd's flock I could hear once more, drifting on the wind...?

END OF PART 3

PART 4 -

...And now, the fourth & final episode in the exhiliarating tale, Three Go Cold in the Peaky Bits. (Certificate 18 - not suitable for minors)

Geoff, Mikki and their shamanic trouser-freak moved onto the final leg of their strange adventure of seeking out stones, fondling rocks and other curious lithophilic rummagings!

As we entered the quiet and gorgeous little village of Birchover, the ancient and authentic call of words seemed etched on some occult placard on a building blessed with the age of centuries: The Druid's Inn, it said. We didn't go see him (the druid that is), but instead were led up an old path of tree roots and aged oaks, towards a craggy mass of great boulders which, legend tells, was the abode of events heathen. It had that sorta feel about it - but then it could just have been the end-effects of mi shamanic trousers!

It's an impressive place - as most folk who come here must think. Geoff told us how some old local, a few centuries back, spent much time here, cutting out the caves, stone seats and rectangular rock-bowls which are found all along the tops & edges of this great outcrop. But it's thought that something much older was here aswell.....

The whispering of the shepherd's flock was tickling my aural senses, and then Geoff said the magic words - "There's some cup-and-rings up here!"

After dragging him away from a curious rocking stone (which some weird-looking tramp was up against, rocking himself-off upon its hardness), he took us to the first carving. A strange thing indeed - and though not quite unique, it was in cup-and-ring terms: a fascinating-looking 'ring' with a cross cut through its axes, then almost sun-rays around the solar-cross itself. Potential cups were there to be seen aswell, but it was this central design that looked puzzling.

In all honesty, I'd say the carving was more of Saxon date than Bronze Age - though I could be wrong. It's just that the primary symbol at the heart of this design is akin to the many early xtian etchings, found on many crosses and early churches. To get an idea of what I mean, have a look at some of the excellent early articles & books of J. Romilly Allen, W.G. Collingwood and their ilk. In Victorian times, a great number of excellent surveys emerged detailing the old stone crosses of the British Isles, and the imagery carved on some of them are of developed, or evolving cup&ring designs. And this is what appears to be carved here. It had that look about it - but equally as important, it had that feel about it aswell.

But on the other side of the Rowter Rocks was a more convincing aged specimen! Geoff showed us a sort-of 'Serpent' stone carving, but the light (as she had been all day) was poor. The cups and some meandering-line was visible, but the overall picture of this design was hard to make out. Another visit is definitely required to see this - and the one he showed us last of all...

On a large, sloping boulder (unusual in itself) were etched, upon the top-ridge, three distinct cup-and-rings. One (the centre of the 3) has a secondary ring round it. The cups here are large and untypical of its more northern cup-like compatriots. But as our eyes gained clarity through the initial greyness of this wooded enclave, so more ingredients emerged from the big carved rock. From the top central cup&ring, curious faint lines ran off, squiggling epileptically off down and left, without apparent direction. Truly weird bits indeed! The top-left cup&ring on the southern-edge appeared to have more character easing its way out, though not much - and certainly nowhere near as peculiar as the central ring!

I was stroking and fondling my way round the edges of this stone, when Mikki started rubbing a bitta moss on the bottom edge. Here she found another distinct cup-marking, with what looked like 2-3 other smaller ones just to its right. And near this were more lines, another cup (seemingly hemmed-in with a broken line to its edges), and one running up the left slope. A curious semi-circle of more modern 'cups' (you'll see 'em in the images) starting from the right-hand edge, arcing across thru the centre of the boulder and down towards the 'squared' cup&ring is blatant when you stand back - but this doesn't seem archaic.

Sadly the light was fading. Geoff was rushing round trying to locate another carving that his memory had betrayed him with, and to which our eyes were unable to help, and so we called it a day. We slowly frobbled up and round the eastern edges of the old Rowters, telling that we'd have to come back here again in the Springtime.

My shamanic trousers had run their course and stopped freezing mi bollocks-off. We headed back to the van, past the druid's bit at the bottom, and headed back into the grey metropolis of modern civilization. A bit tired, a bit hungry, a bit worse-for-wear, but definitely up for doing it again sometime when we have more light!

THE END!

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Posted by Paulus
17th February 2010ce

Monuments of north Brittany: a short film

Brittany is richly-endowed with Neolithic and bronze age monuments. However, many are overlooked in favour of the famous sites at Carnac, in much that same way that most people in the UK don't know about any monument other than Stonehenge.

The monuments of the Brittany's north coast are particularly spectacular and varied. In this film you will see Kernic, Quillimadec and Crech Quille allee couvertes, Men Marz giant menhir and the great cairn at Barnenez, surely the most wonderful of Brittanys ancient treasures?

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Posted by Jane
24th January 2010ce

Ty ar Chorriket: a short film

Ty ar Chorriket is a prehistoric burial chamber in Brittany, constructed in the arc boutee style, like a house of cards. There are only five of these still known to exist in France. This one's the best (I think!)

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Posted by Jane
23rd January 2010ce

Giant menhirs and a couple of lovely dolmens: a short film

To the north and west of Brest in Brittany, at the most westerly tip of France, can be found some of the tallest menhirs still standing in Europe. We visited some of the these giant tapering stones in October 2009 and here's a three minute film wot I made.

The monuments featured in the film are:
Lannoulouarn menhir
Kerhouezel menhir
St Denec menhirs
Mesdoun menhirs
Poulyot dolmen (wins prize for the most perfect dolmen ever in the whole world)
Kergadiou menhirs
Men-Milliget dolmen
Kerloas tallest menhir in France (I think!)

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Posted by Jane
17th January 2010ce

Aberdeenshire Antics

Vicky and I visited Aberdeenshire in summer 2008 and had one of the best adventures ever.

I drove up from Lancashire, picking Vicky up in Glasgow and then we headed off, picnic in tow, for 3 full days of stone hunting. Our first site was the wonderful Tomnaverie. I know that some find the reconstruction of this site frsutrating but I liked it! I liked the wee path leading you up to the site, twee as it may be; at least it felt like the site was appreciated and better than it being left to fall into a more delapitated state.

Tomnaverie — Images

29.10.08ce

It was around 6pm as we arrived, after a long day's driving and the sky was blue and gold. The atmosphere of this site really got to us; maybe it was the fact it was the first of the journey or maybe I was just reacting to being upright and walking, after being sat in the car for 6 hours, but I loved it. It was all jumbled and confusing, but still magnificent!

From Tomnaverie, we carried on towards our first B&B of the trip, in Insch. Our plan was to stay overnight here and then head out to Archaeolink in the morning - the thought of an archaeology-based "theme park" had amused us both and we had no idea what to expect.

Dunnideer — Fieldnotes

29.10.08ce

We were staying in Insch for the night, so after a long drive up from Lancashire, stopping en-route to pick Vicky up in Glasgow, we finally saw Dunnideer around 7pm.

As we drove by this most beautiful of sites, a herd of red deer came running down the hill, following a huge stag. We pulled the car over and just watched, amazed by it all. There was just the railway track between us and them. The stag looked across at us, sniffed majestically into the wind and set off again, followed by the hinds. The most Scottish of moments I have ever witnessed!!

The B&B was pretty ropey but the setting was amazing - our room had a wee bench and table outside and we sat and watched the sunset and dusk fall over the hill. It was still light enough to read our maps at 11pm, with a bottle of wine and some bread and cheese to finish it off - just perfect.....

Dunnideer — Images

29.10.08ce

The following morning we headed off to Archaeolink but decided it was worth stopping off at Stonehead en route. It was a weirdly misty morning but as we aproached Stonehead, the mist cleared and gave way to a beautiful blue sky. As we parked on the road, we stopped and asked the man in the house adjoining the field whether it was OK to leave the car and go into the field and he said it was. So, over the fence we hopped and over to the stones we ran. This is such a HUGE site; it is almost overwhelming, We spent a good few minutes checking out the different possible alignments and Vicky was taking a picture of me against the stones when I noticed a rather frisky herd of cows heading our way; they had been hiding at the bottom of the field and we hadn't seen them as we entered.

Now, I love cows. I really, really like them. A lot. But.....Vicky doesn't. She is a bit nervous around them and, as I saw them heading towards us, I quietly said "don't panic...." She turned round, saw that they were heading directly for her and shrieked! She set off running towards the the trees and I was stood there going "oh, don't run, it''ll be fine, they are only curious". I then turned round and saw them all thundering towards me! I ran too. We had to leg it over the barbed wire fence, only my legs are a lot shorter than Vicky's and I got stuck on the fence. I ripped my trousers and most of my right thigh, trying to get over. When we recovered our dignity, we decided that Stonehead was a site better viewed from the roadside!
We had wanted to try and get up to Dunnideer circle but, with my leg bleeding and thoughts of lockjaw setting in, we headed back into the town to buy a bottle of TCP!

Stonehead — Images

29.10.08ce

Once I had regained my composure and we decided that I wan't going to die from rusty barbed wire poisoning, we headed off for Archaeolink. It was brilliant! If you are ever up in this neck of the woods, I would really recommend that you go. They have reconstructions of stone and timber circles, an iron age round house and bog goddess, mesolithic hunting camps and a fabulous wicker woman. Great fun.

Having played around for a couple of hours, we really wanted to get back to the "real" archaeology, so we headed off to the next site of the day - the wonderfully named Loanhead of Daviot.

Loanhead of Daviot — Fieldnotes

17.01.10ce

This site was relatively easy to find, being well-signed from the road. Lots of parking and a pleasant enough wall through a wee wooded area before emerging into bright sunshine and the realisation that it was school-trip day! The whole site was swarming with Aberdeenshire school-children who appeared to be undertaking some kind of mathematical experiment!

As this was the one site I had been least excited by the prospect of visiting, it wasn't too much of a downer and I quite liked the fact that they were engaging with their heritage. It did make getting decent pictures a bit of a 'mare though!

The situation is fabulous, with amazing views over the verdant countryside but, like others here, the reconstruction of this site made this a hard one to get too giddy about.

After goodness-know-how-long drinking in Sunhoney's wonderful ambience, we decided we should call it a day. We had been out for hours and were due to head back into Ballater and find our Hotel for the night. However, as we set off from Sunhoney, I spotted a sign for Midmar and we took a quick diversion to Midmar Kirk.

Midmar Kirk — Fieldnotes

28.02.10ce

When I first started dragging Mark around the country in search of stones, one of the first places we visited was Rudston Monolith; a site that took my breath away with the huge phallic stone stood alongside the wee church. Here at Midmar I again felt that thrill of seeing the ancient with the relatively new, side by side and seemingly in some kind of harmony. The grave stones are a little too close but this didn't seem too intrusive to me. I just marvel at the fact that any of this site remains.

Midmar Kirk — Images

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Posted by Vicster
16th January 2010ce

Edited 28th February 2010ce

Another world.... Walking in the air

After last weeks aborted attempt to climb Moel y Gamelin and visit the big barrow up there and the nearby hillfort Moel y Gaer, I decided today would be a good day to try again, but it wasnt, I didnt even try to get onto the horseshoe pass the road may have been passable but the hilltops were lost in fog, so I switched to plan B which was try to get to a trio of big barrows north west of llyn Brenig.
Rhiwiau barrow is three metres tall and looked to be the easiest to get to, but no sooner had I turned off the main snowcleared road the small road became undrivable after a few hundred metres. I dumped/parked the car where it would least cause offence donned my all weather clothing and set off up the road.
I didnt get far, the sky was clear and visibility was good but a road sign hinted at a walk of at least three miles there and back, nope, back to the car.

The trouble with my plan C was there was no plan C, the best I could come up with was go to Anglesey buy a map and try to get to a few of the easier to visit sites. As I was drving past Conwy I noticed the sky had a bit of colour to it over the mountains a road sign said Penmaenmawr and suddenly a plan was born, the druids circle was my new destination.
Mostly the roads were ok lower down but as I drove higher the roads got worse and I left the car at a convenient parking place near a footpath
It probably took about forty minutes from car to circle 275, with every yard gained the snow got deeper and the path got slippier.
Above me to my right was Graig llwyd axe factory/quarry and even without a map I knew that circle 275 was near the power lines that cross the hills nearby, unfortunatly I strayed from the path and knee deep snow sapped my stregnth, at this time the fog came, I could tell which way the path went and which way was north so I stuggled on. Out of the whiteness came some dark shapes and I made my way over,
mostly beacause it was the only feature I could see, I sank with both feet in a really deep snowdrift just as the wind whipped a snow cloud into my face and I shouted into the wind, Its usually about now that a feather light monk rescues you and takes you to a hidden monastary where you develop some super powers, but I got cold waiting and pulled my self out staggered over to the dark shapes which then pleasingly turned into a stone circle, huffing and puffing more than a bit I smiled at the prospect of knowing once more where I was,

Aubrey Burl says of this lovely little five stone cirlce that it is considered an outlier of the southwest Irish five stoners with one of the stones (the recumbent) much flatter than the others, they were probably up here getting copper and stone axes?
From here it wasnt far to the druids circle, and it never dissapoints, my grandfather whom I never met brought my teenage mother up here in 1953, so the stones hold a special quality for me.
Standing out of the wind behind the tallest stone, the deity stone or the alter stone, dont know which, it appeared to me that me and the stones were the only things that existed, we were in the middle of a complete whiteout the only thing I could see was the stones, there was no mountains no path no anything, here I would stay forever, lost.
Then it cleared enough for me to come back into the world and I could see from the hillock that overlooks the druids circle the weird muddle of stones known only as monument 280. (worse name ever) I waded over to them and took a couple of pics of the confusing mess.

The ring cairn that is called circle 278 wasnt obvious to see so I went in the other direction towards Cors y Carneddau stone circle, I found the kink in the wall where this ruined stone ring lurks only three stones seem to be left. Over the wall is a ring cairn and a kerb cairn both in good condition from the ring cairn I spotted the barrow and had to get back over the wall and through two three foot high snowdrifts, twice.
The barrow is about two metres tall and has a scoop out of its top, on a clear day good views across the valley to Drosgl and llwytmor can be seen.
Not bad for stone hunting in the fog and snow without a map, by now my fingers and toes were going a tad numb so I started back down, as I skidded and slid down the hillside it occured to me that as the snow was so deep my feet hadnt touched the ground for quite a while so I was actually walking in the air and looking a bit snowmanish too...... Shut up Aled !!!

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Posted by postman
11th January 2010ce

Winter solstice/Yule time Quiz: Trainspotter or Druid?

Winter solstice/Yule time Quiz : Trainspotter or Druid?

These are generally male-specific tendencies - females rarely finding the need spend their Saturdays on station platforms noting down train-types - although the appeal of the dressing-up box is frequently irresistible.
Here are a few test indicators -

This last year, have you
Dashed around the countryside taking hundreds of photos of megaliths?
Ticked off some of your List of Stones To Be Seen Before I Die?
Got distracted by a) heaps of rocks in fields b) humps in the landscape when you should be looking at the road ahead?

or
Started growing a beard?
Sewn bedsheets into a wearable tent?
Looked for woad in your local DIY store?

Do you always carry
Azimuth-tables and notebook?
A compass and measuring-tape?
or
A crystal on handspun wool thread?
A dowsing rod for ley-lines?

Have others caught you
Staring at the ground in search of flint arrow-heads?
or
Staring into the distance calculating sight-lines?

Have you caught yourself
Imagining finding a massive menhir, complete with cupulas and carvings - to the accolade of archaeologists?
or
Dreaming of leading the solstice-chant at your local henge, complete with adoring accolytes - to the admiration of your mates?

Answers on a postcard, please.

Back a few years, I saw the warning-light of Doubt in my Mary's eye. Where was this dolmen-thing leading to? Around this time she had just discovered The Oil Drum.com and was beginning to grasp the seriousness of the global situation. Our evening conversations - a thirty-year-long dialogue over the customary bottle of wine - soon developed into a curious mix of Peak Oil warnings and population/water/resources statistics on her side - and Peak Wood, Neolithic population explosion and Bronze age soil erosion on my side.

It's possible that she saved me from turning into either of the caricatures listed above, by urging upon me the need for peer-reviewed information, analysis and discussion, and the importance of relevance. Both trainspotter and druid are essentially taking 'time out' in a playworld created to allow the poor bloke to feel he has some little control over events, or some special status denied him in the mundane world. Both are imaginative constructs, arenas where the protagonists and adversaries are chosen by the lead actor - be they numbers and lists, or gods and incantations.

Latterly her panic and gloom have settled into resigned pragmatism: our leaders will continue to fail us, so we'd better double the kitchen-garden, halve our consumption and strengthen village links. She reads less 'doomer-web' stuff and comes out dolmen-hunting more. She has, however, spotted a new danger emerging: her husband may be turning into that third possible stereotype, the Prehistory Bore. But her accuracy with shoe on shin under the dining-table is as unerring as ever - I won't be allowed to become a caricature of myself.

Richard @ dolmen.wordpress.com

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Posted by roc
27th December 2009ce

soltices and dolmen orientations

Last year I was all set to witness the sun rise on the newly-turned year - but it was pouring down, untypically for our normally cold clear winters.

This year I can touch the cloud-base, the sky's so heavy with snow. But I've a Theory To Prove, and the forecast said it will clear a bit . . . so it's up in the dark for porridge, then coffee in the flask and tog up like an Inuit - or Idiot.

Now, it's regrettable, but in this dumbed-down day-and-age, going dolmen-hunting puts me way over at the Eccentric end of the spectrum. So it was with alarm that I heard that my wife and daughter wanted to come too. I know they're used to me being a bit barmy - but to want to join in - they must be mad!

The theory isn't that startling: a number of archaeologists have noted that the alignments of the dolmens in Languedoc-Roussillon are all over the compass (including one north-facing, at Lugne) and that this reflects waves of 'immigration' or cultural influence - and integration.

I simply wanted to establish that one of the nearest dolmens to our village, was one of the very few of the 150 tombs in our region that actually faced the winter solstice sun-rise. With the dolmen de la Porteille, twenty km. south in the Corbieres Hills, it's the only tomb that faces exactly 120 degrees, E S-E.

I confirmed my own measurements with those in the Corpus Mensurarum (the core data from 2,500 communal tombs from around the Mediterranean) that forms the basis of Michael Hoskin's tremendous study: Tombs, Temples and their Orientations. It's a summation of half a lifetime's work at Cambridge University, with the data set out in clear and accessible form.
Also, I have to admit that the U.S. Naval Observatory Astronomical Applications Dept. azimuth-calculating programme was most useful.

Naturally I was disappointed when the glow to the east failed to break into a dazzling sunbeam smiting the chevet stone at the back of the tomb. But it did give rise to further thoughts regarding the other dolmens of the region - those that are oriented to a sun already risen.

Back at the house now and I'm delighted to come upon the article in Modern Antiquarian about the bone-middens near Stonehenge, and the winter festivals that they might represent.

Then I'm out in the courtyard, gathering old logs for this year's midwinter solstice bonfire party, when it occured to me that by not orienting their tombs too strictly to the instant of sunrise, by relaxing the 'fundamentalist dogma' by a few degrees, the clan could avoid disappointments, dismay and despair. If they let the day develop and the sun establish itself, before opening the tomb for its annual rituals - then the ceremony could continue more effectively - and with less sniggering from the family . . .

Hoskin's conclusions follow similar paths - only more seriously. He proposes that the waves of influences - sunrising architects versus sunsetting - mingled in a beneficent manner here in our region, and that pacific concessions to each 'culture' were made.

Meanwhile I found myself unconsciously building a kind of bonfire I've never done, or seen done, before. Seven short upright logs surrounding one tall central log, with space between each for bundles of kindling. The henge or harrispil of burning wood-menhirs would be pushed gradually closer to the central Standing Log - but still apart to allow a venturi-effect of air to circulate.

It worked, and there was plenty of cheer from the pot of Vin Brûlé for the families and friends, both French and English, who came to celebrate - but no bone-midden.

There's more on le Dolmen de la Madeleine - both summer and midwinter photos - plus links to some of Hoskin's work, and the sun/moon azimuth calculator at www.dolmen.wordpress.com

Richard

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Posted by roc
23rd December 2009ce

Dolmens and hillforts

Languedoc has been a crossroads of people and cultures and trade since prehistoric times - and our corner of South West France where the river Aude meets the Mediterranean, reveals these traces most particularly. It's an unassuming but benign river : bringing snowmelt from the Pyrenees, slowing in the fertile plain, before opening into accessible lagoons at its mouth near Narbonne.

From the south, over the Pyrenees, came the sunrise dolmen-builders, and from the sea in the east came the sunset builders. They came and stayed because the climate was good - and because there were metals in the hills, and a clear route through the Carcassonne Gap and down the Garonne to the Atlantic.

Metals and goods came down from Ireland and Cornwall, and were traded and exchanged for ceramics and jade and jet from Italy and Greece, and up from the Iberian peninsular. Poppy and sativa seed users met the beer-drinking Bell-beaker people - traces remain in the now-silted protohistoric lagoon ports.

For them here, the late Neolithic and Chalcolithic period was a golden age, with enough land and forest to go round, sufficient water and wildlife for the population, and an energizing interchange of ideas and goods. Families and clans lived in peaceful harmony with modest communal burial tombs spaced evenly through the hills of the Minervois and the Corbieres. There was no warrior-caste : there was no war.

It's with deep pleasure then, that I roam around these hills looking for the half-forgotten burial places of these happy few.

Of course they did not know that they were happy. They didn't know that the mines they dug would produce manganese-dust, leaving precious children and valued elders half-paralysed. And that the need for wood to fuel the forges would denude the hills of trees. Or that their ever-increasing flocks of sheep would strip the slopes of soil. Or that empires to the east would fall, and trade collapse, and that a dark age would engulf them. Or that new people would come, the Volcae Tectosages or Celts as we generally know them, with the new metal and the iron-working skills that produced lethal and durable weaponry. Then everything could start up all over again, but different.

I record and write about those Iron Age hillforts and oppida because my megalithic searches bring me into close contact with them - and because they too are fast being forgotten. But I do it with unease and a sense of foreboding - though their locations are often dramatic and the construction impressive. For by this time money has arrived, and these places represent concentrations of wealth and power and fear.

So I return with relief to the solitary dolmens, knowing they signify valleys of people unencumbered yet with the burden of overpopulation and the weight of complexity.

Richard
http://www.dolmen.wordpress.com

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Posted by roc
13th December 2009ce

The Nine Ladies, Stanton Moor 30/10/09

The protesters are gone now. The site was quiet on a pre-Halloween morning, just a couple of people walking dogs, passing through. By the quarry site just along from the king stone we found a fly agaric the size of a saucer.

In the heart of the oak tree was the tissue of a letter from a woman to her partner. He'd commited suicide, she didn't know why, and she missed him with all her heart.

In the branches of the tree were childrens' wishes. One wished for the universe to send happiness. Another wished for a dog.

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Posted by Danny Moran
30th October 2009ce

WILD AND WINDSWEPT ORCADIAN WONDERS DAY TWO

DAY 2

After a night on the tiles in Kirkwall, which included a fabulous couple of hours spent in a bar full of motoring memorabilia, and then a few too many night-caps back at the B&B (I went to bed when the singing started!) we awoke a little bleary eyed but full of excitement for the next instalment of our Orkney adventure. Following a cracking full Scottish breakfast, we jumped into the mini-bus and headed straight off to the Ring of Brodgar. We had driven by a couple of times yesterday and the anticipation of finally getting to see it, up close and personal, had made me positively giddy (again). As we parked up in the Historic Scotland car park Alan suggested we pay close attention to how we were being "led" towards the circle by the footpaths and how Historic Scotland wanted us to view the circle. Later, he told us that he had hung back to watch how we all approached the site and this made for a lively discussion on phenomenolgy and human behaviour - apparently we all walked towards the circle and then around it; no one walked straight through the middle of it and we talked about whether this was intentional? It made for a very interesting argument about whether we were doing what our forebears would have done thousands of years ago; skirting round the edge of the monument as the centre was "out of bounds" for specific reasons? Oh, and we all later agreed that Historic Scotland's approach to the stones was from completely the wrong direction!

Ring of Brodgar — Fieldnotes

30.10.09ce

So, what to say about the Ring of Brodgar? It completely and utterly blew me away. I know, I know, I have said that sooooooo many time before but I could happily have stayed at this site all day. Other sites, that I have longed to see and then made the pilgrimage to, have sometimes had an anti-climatic feeling about them, but not here. As I approached the circle, I decided to take a slight detour and instead of heading straight to the stones, I turned away and walked towards the striking mound of Salt Knowe. I think I was just too overcome by the enormity of Brodgar and felt like I needed to get a different perspective of the stones and I am so glad I did. The view from here was just fabulous; looking towards the circle, you could really see the lie of the land and how the stones sit in the landscape. I finally headed towards the stones, skirting around them and then decided I still needed a different view, so headed straight towards the Comet Stone so see how the site looked from here. Again, a completely different perspective and from here you can see the whole circle against the horizon whereas from Salt Knowe you see the site within the landscape. The stones themselves are mighty beasts and almost too numerous to comprehend. Bloody hell, it is just awe-inspiring - this is a site that I need to return to and (hopefully) soon.

Salt Knowe — Images

30.10.09ce

Ring of Brodgar — Images

02.10.09ce

Everyone of us felt the same way about Brodgar and there was a real sense that we had just seen and felt something so inspiring that the rest of the day may well be a bit of a damp squib. With this in mind, we headed out for Skara Brae. When we arrived we had a quick nosey round the visitor centre then headed off to the Bay of Skaill for a bit of beach-combing. All of us convinced that we would find some Neolithic treasure, washed up amongst the stones and seaweed. We watched the seals bobbing and just took in the beauty of the surroundings before heading off the see the "star attraction". Oh my.

Skara Brae — Fieldnotes

30.10.09ce

I feel like a bit of an old grump saying this but Skara Brae left me feeling a bit disappointed. My favourite part of it was the re-constructed house, which has been built with care and attention and you are allowed to go in and have a wee play.....but the site itself? I think I have just read too many books and seen too many programmes about it but it just didn't have the expected "wow" feeling. I know that Jane and Hob both suggested going after hours, which would probably have helped, but the officious little signs everywhere and the HS woman having a hissy fit because one of us dared to lean over a bit of grass (grass, for gawd's sake!) to get a photo just felt really rubbish. I only hung around for a few minutes then headed back up to the visitor centre to read a bit of George Mackay Brown and have a cuppa. Isn't that awful? This is such an amazing site that I should have been awestruck but I was more impressed with Barnhouse – it isn't the site itself but the way it is managed and I think I probably expected too much. I have since told myself off for being such a grumpy bugger and wish I had been a bit more interested in it all but it just didn't grab me on the day. Bah - and indeed - humbug.

Skara Brae — Images

31.10.09ce

By now, the old familiar hunger was setting in and we decided to head to Stromness for lunch and a wander. What a beautiful little town! "Oooh, I could definitely live here", I thought, as I wandered around the streets and pottered in the bookshops and galleries. It probably helped that the sun decided to make itself known and we ended up sitting by the water, eating lovely food. Always a good combination.
After Stromness we set off for the next site of the day – the Broch of Gurness. By now, the sun was really taking hold although the ever present Orkney winds were still evident and this made for a wonderfully windswept visit.

Broch of Gurness — Fieldnotes

30.10.09ce

Brochs are not my strong point, having only ever visited Carlway on Lewis previously, but Gurness was something to behold. The sheer amount of archaeological remains were stunning; evidence of buildings left, right and centre! I could see how the whole village worked, with the defensive structure (with possible kennels at the front doors!) surrounded by what appear to be domestic houses. Looking across the Eynhallow Sound to Rousay from Gurness, to the site of other brochs (and the location on Mid Howe) gave a real sense of perspective and we spent a good couple of hours mooching round the site. On the beach, Vicky even braved the elements and went for a paddle and we found what appeared to be cup marks in the natural stone shelves.

We were all in really high spirits, if a little knackered, after being out in such an exhilarating environment and as we headed back towards Kirkwall, none of us were really ready to call it a day, so we decided to make a last stop at Cuween. This had been on my "must do" list but I was well aware that I was already piggy-backing on other people's trip and hadn't raised any objections when it didn't appear on the original itinerary, so I was secretly elated at the prospect of seeing the "Tomb of the Beagles".

The Fairy Knowe — Fieldnotes

30.10.09ce

A short but steep-ish walk up the hill and we were there; then there was the obligatory crawl through the passage into PITCH BLACKNESS. We had a couple of torches but there was no real sense of the size of the place until we managed to get all 9 of us in there! There was lots of hilarity as we tried to work out what was there and I used my camera flash to illuminate the whole chamber a couple of times but this felt like the real thing.....discovering little side chambers and squeezing inside with just a pin prick of light from the torch was just incredible. Even better than Unstan which, with its helpful glass skylight at least allows you some perspective, Cuween leaves it up to you to find your bearings and create your own light. All 9 of us trying to talk at once, someone suddenly saying "oooh, there's a wee chamber here, give me some light" and constantly bumping into one another, I am not sure we gave this tomb the respect it deserved but we had a fabulous time and we all agreed that Cuween was the unexpected highlight of the trip. Emerging back out into the most beautiful, bright sunshine with 9 sets of muddy knees and bums, Alan pointed out places where other excavations had taken place and we pin-pointed the cairn on Wideford Hill opposite.

The Fairy Knowe — Images

30.10.09ce

All fired up from yet another outstanding site, we were debating whether to try and get to Wideford but time was really cracking on and we had been out for 9 hours already, so instead, we headed back to Kirkwall, exhausted but deliriously happy with the day's events.

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Posted by Vicster
30th October 2009ce

Edited 31st October 2009ce

George Marwick's Landscapes

Even now there is still dispute as to whether the incoming Vikings slaughtered the Orkney Picts, in which case we would know nothing of what went before - no knowledge or folklore. However if, as has been suggested recently, there was in early times a [proto-]English presence here then we have a possible agent for transmission for matters of history, folklore etc. It could be that when the Vikings came the 'English' were already in the Orkneys but seen as distant relatives rather than enemies given a choice as to whether to be friend or foe - there are precedents in other countries.

WAR IN IRON AGE SANDWICK ?

Sorry to raise the Gaelic spectre but George refers this battle to two neighbouring [sub?]kings each given the title 'righ' by him. They were based at the Broch of Borwick/Borgwich near Yesnaby and Verran [? Verron Point] in Voyatown (NW corner of the Loch of Stenness). This battle took place on the slope of Bruntland Hill [Gyron HY2416] at a spot now occupied by East Giron, and when the land was first brought into cultivation the soil produced a large number of rough sandstone/whinstone 'slewchan stones'.

NORTHERN ISLES DRUIDS ?

Traditionally the original religion of the Northern Isles was the "wey of the druis". There were sites (often enclosures) called Quoymadruidays/Madralas in Orkney (cultivated by the white folk or left to pasture), surrounded by stone/earth dykes, where stock could not lie as long as the sun shone on the 'hare-lift' [whatever that is] - one of these in Yesnaby near Bride's Kirk had the name of White Quoy. In a corner of these places the 'White Chammer'/Madruid had a rough dwelling and at night came and took, nay demanded, whatever he wanted without any hindrance. The Ma-Druis or White Druids/Folk also had the name of Queena Folk in Shetland. Shetlanders danced at sites called the Healtadens of the Queena Folk on Yule/Jule Day and on St.John's Day, also on Lammerday when the sea-god Ra kindled the sea-fires (these often continuing to Lammas). One of the quoymadruidays in Yesnaby at a place called Hael [presumably the same site as White Quoy] had a drui-stane of odd shape at its centre, and at this site there were many black stone lumps said to be the petrified remains of Christian souls - the howthen/howithers resisted their teaching violently ! Marwick gives hael-stone as the local name for white quartz - a lump of said stone was found in all the 'aesir-knowes' [crematory mounds] excavated by W.Allan at Langadae [Burn of Linga Dee]Stanny Knowe [Stany Knowe] and the Chammers 'chambers' of the Stanny Knowe was another quoymadruiday in Yesnaby where the White Folk traditionally demanded tribute
The Howas [from haugr 'mound-dwellers] and White Folk both persecuted those who followed the Bright One (a.k.a. the Bonnyman or White Christ), so there were two distinct peoples living in Orkney at the time of the Morning Star men preaching Christianity. North of Bride's Kirk is a site Marwick calls Tirlhow [South Seatter mound], and around its base some small cists were held to contain the "young brains" of those tirled 'hung' as a result. Close by are many cinders, lumps of vitreous calcified bone locally called smeethow/Smithow cramps. Once hangired 'hung' the [other?] remains of these followers of Brida were placed in Nurse Keepers (knowes) in the vicinity, these being thence called Hangi(r)hows.

CULDEE MINISTRY

Traditionally this came about through the church sending a priest called Mohr. This "quoycumquoy" or 'Morning Star man' established what became the St.Lawrence stook near Linahowe/Lenahowe, in support of which folk mentioned a 3' x1' whinstone headstone in the present andwick parish churchyard (once upright by a well) inscribed in antiquity 'Mabhir' (earlier reported as 'Mobhr'). The extensive St.Lawrence monastery ruins, circular in parts, measured almost an acre and still stood a few courses high in the 19th century before the large stones were quarried for the steading [this will be the broch of Verron - it is common to find brochs adapted for ecclesiastical purposes]. This place had the name Mo(a)bisyard/Moarisyard and the preacher was buried near a well either there or near the Established Church.
[Expanding on this ?] there were tales of three brothers called Mohr [likely present Moar], who styled themselves as preachers of the Bright Morning Star. Lawrence/Lowrie we have met [I think he may have originally been nameless]. Duthan/Duthac held sway from Yesnabi, which then became Yesknakabie 'pulpit/church in the valley' [most likely Bride's Kirk], but also held St.Mary's kirk near Cauldhame in Stromness parish. This latter kirk was traditionally attacked by the lord of nearby Bluidy castle [the gallery grave of Castle Bloody]. He himself was killed in Tenston tunship by wild Harra [sic] men in the vicinity of Duthois/Duehouse [Doehouse] and buried at or near the present farm of that name. The third brother, James, resided at the Kirk of Qu(h)arbith [Warebeth cemetery built about a broch, or to be more precise the Monk's Green area] but was killed at the Park of Haarn. This lay in the parish of Hawn/Haun, which would seem to be Hoy as his killers were gossips 'emissaries' of the White Folk [pagans] of that island [though confusingly Marwick's article could be read as its being near Warebeth]. The part of Warebeth churchyard where he was buried bore his name, with his remains under the old buildings there. When the papacy arose they placed a church there, the priest living at Braenigarth [Glebe next to Brinnigar].

STARRA KIRKS

These were Culdee establishments of the Morning Star men (Orkney Norn Culdaes and Shetland Culdris) who came from the "Western" [whatever that means]. Marwick talks of the ruins of two ancient kirks in Yesnaby township. The elder of these is Briti-kirk a.k.a. Bride's Kirk, near which are the feal 'earth sod' foundations of a building (roughly 14' by 9' internally) termed the quam-cwn-que 'arched roof house of the qucamque' i.e. priest's house. He also appears to refer to it as a small mound called the Wham Whee, and likely the "guidispell hoose" [because both houses had a Calvary Stone etc]. At the W end of the latter, which Marwick remembered as once surrounded by graves, stood the large Cal-var Stone with two named sides. What appeared to be a cross of St.Andrew marked the calagoe 'westerly facing' cal-vaar side [sic] and a human figure encompassed by rayed rondels [a Morning Star man I take it] on the Golguotie [Golgotha ?] side. Nearby was a piece of land called Quoynaspells/Quoynaspelt.
Coming back from an outing to Work farm Marwick's host Mr.Flett drew his attention to what used to be called a Starra/Scarra Kirk by a water course in the Carness brecks 'uncultivated land'. The whinstone foundations of this site looked to be surrounded by a stone and earth wall [a dyke I guess], the main building being a rectangle of some 20' by 12'. Roughly 10' from the buildings south end a Starra Stane of sandstone stood 4' high, measuring a foot across and 4-5" thick. Along the Burn of Leashun in Birsay parish were the ruins of a similar small [?smaller] site.

THE GUID MAN'S BODY

Some time after St.Magnus was killed on Gairsay the occurence of miracles led to his body being moved to Mainland. Landfall was made at a creek to the south of the Point of Aikerness, whence the 'guid man's body' went straight to the Earl's Palace in Birsay. Along the way it went through Hund(i)land and then the level ground of Kirbister [Kirbuster] SE of the Loch of Stanger/Boardhouse before resting at St.Magnus Well before the final bit. Thus George Marwick. But sources other than his indicate a route nearer the coast for the journey from Gurness to Birsay, with a 'Mansie's Grip' as a resting place. This is at the NW corner of the Loch of Harray. From here there was another stop near the old house of Lingro, probably the Knowes of Lingro [perhaps marked by a stone arrangement roadside]. Then the last resting place was on the ridge giving a first glimpse of Birsay church from Crustan [two sites at Knowe of Crustan]. However there is also a boulder called a Mansie Stone further along in the turf at Round Geo [couldn't find this geo named on any maps].
A large stone marked where the grave was in the church floor. Before being moved to Kirkwall in the summer the remains were swaddled in a 'rowing clath' (shroud). These 'scoorins' of native woolen cloth were boiled in a sixty gallon copper kettle that could be viewed at the palace for a long time thereafter before being moved to Lyking. The gravestone broke when the body was moved. Eight men carried the coffer on a bier. Twatt is said to have its name because a dispute arose at the Stane o'Quibune (Wheebin Stone) as to which side of Floati Loch [Loch of Banks] and Greeny Loch [Loch of Sabiston] to pass. Next the cortege rested at the Knowe of Nurton [Knowe of Taft/Greeny], the winter-spring residence of the knocklapi called Knorri (to whom a part of the 'meal used to go). Here a Sandwick contingent added themselves, that expected from Evie not turning up, and the party continued to the Stone o' Whilcoe (on the outskirts of present Dounby near the Whilchow Well) dividing Birsay and Evie. More folk from Sandwick and Evie joined the cortege and supped on Kirkness ale before it moved on to the Knowes of Conyar [Coynear] to meet the Harraymen. Next they rested in Grimeston tunship where the Bisay men left, though not before erecting the Staney Hill standing stone. Folk from Stromness and Rendall joined here. In Harray's NE corner there is a 30" stone called 'the guid Mans resting stanes' on a heather ridge called Riv(i)age that slopes towards Binscarth. Finally we hear of them coming to Kingsdale and Caldale, which latter is said to have its name from this great assembly here [I wonder if there was a final resting place at Corse 'cross' as the old drove road from Orphir ended at Walliwall not far from Corse Cottage and this would have allowed Orphir folk to pay their respects too].

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Barnhouse Settlement — Fieldnotes

27.10.09ce

Whilst we were "ooohing" and "aaaahhing" at the wonder of it all at Stenness, Alan had wandered off towards the Barnhouse site. For him, this was an incredibly personal journey, returning to Orkney for the first time since he worked on the excavations at Barnhouse in the late 1980s. Again, I was almost dumb-founded by the archaeological remains of this site; where else can you see such outstanding remains of what was clearly a domestic location, situated so close to monuments such as Stenness and Brodgar? One of the things that has always frustrated me when I have visited sites across the UK and Ireland is "where the bloody hell did they live?" Barnhouse goes some way to easing that frustration and gives an insight into the domestic lives of these monument builders. To me, this is as important and revealing a site as Skara Brae and yet we had the place to ourselves. No tourist buses, no visitor centre and no guides telling us what we can and can't do. Alan explained that the Loch had not existed during the Neolithic period and there was likely to be more archaeological remains under the water. We wandered around, stumbling upon large stones in the landscape and raised mounds, wondering at what it all meant. Fascinating.

By now, it was getting quite late and none of us had eaten or drunk anything since the free glass of wine and weird Worcestershire sauce pretzels we had on the plane but we weren't quite ready to call it a day and into Kirkwall to the B&B just yet. Alan suggested we round off the day with a visit to Unstan, to give us some perspective on our visit to Maes Howe and to see a tomb without the "Disneyfication" we had witnessed earlier.

Unstan — Fieldnotes

27.10.09ce

When we reached Unstan the wind was really picking up a pace and standing on top of the mound was a feat in itself but the views back across the loch were stunning.

We dutifully crawled in to the passage and into the chamber, torches lighting the way. After the pomp and ceremony of visiting the "big" sites we had all dreamed of, Unstan was breathtaking and stole the show for me. This is how I like to see archaeology; on my knees with a torch in my hand and a slightly hysterical sensation coursing through my body! We all got a bit giddy again and kept bumping into each other and talking over each other – 9 of us crammed into the central chamber, just awe-struck by it all. The almost luminous green of the algae reminded me of the covered cairns at Cairnpapple. This was definitely my favourite site of the day.

Unstan — Images

27.10.09ce

After Unstan we discussed whether to go to Wideford and Cuween but it was really getting late and most of us were ready for some food and alcohol. We headed into Kirkwall and found our B&B; a wonderful, warm welcome and straight into the shower before heading off into Kirwall for some food and time to reflect on the amazing day we had just had. The following day, we were planning to visit Bodgar, Skara Brae (and those bloody dressers!) and Gurness.

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Posted by Vicster
27th October 2009ce

Penmarc'h spectaculaire

28 September 2009

The Penmarch peninsula, on the very far bottom left of the sticky-out bit of Brittany, is exceptionally rich in prehistoric monuments, perhaps only second to the Carnac area in their frequency and variety.

We tried to use only our road maps, whatever road signs we stumbled across and a 1984 edition of Burl's 'Megalithic Brittany' to find our way around. But they weren't good enough. There is so much here you need a really good guide if you can one. We eventually found a copy of 'La Bretagne des Megaliths', by Pierre-Roland Giot, published by Editions OUEST-FRANCE (Itineraires de Decouvertes), (ISBN 978-2-7373-4236-3) in a supermarket the day before we came home. Too late to help us, but we bought it anyway. It's in French, but as a complete gazetteer it'll be enough in combination with the blue maps to get you around so you don't miss stuff.

We started with the Kerugou dolmen

Kerugou — Fieldnotes

11.10.09ce

In the fields by a bucolic lane near Plomeur, the Kerugou dolmen is actually a dinky T-shaped passage grave with two chambers at the far end of the passage. Its still got one capstone up which looks at first sight like two because of the way it has been restored. The whole monument stands proud; the lane passing it is at a lower level than the field its in so as you approach it looks much bigger than it actually is.

I noticed a strange smooth round cylindrical stone right next the monument lying on its side. It was in the unmistakeable shape of a giant penis. None of the books or info I can find about this site mentions it at all. Very weird.

Kerugou — Images

15.10.09ce

Next came the chambered tomb on the Pointe de la Torche.

Ben an Dorchenn — Fieldnotes

11.10.09ce

It's in a very dramatic setting, right up on a little headland, sticking out between two wide sandy beaches popular with surfers. It's next to a massive concrete structure which was probably some kind of war emplacement. As well as a central passage it's got five chambers; they're a bit difficult to 'read' as the monument is in some state of disrepair, but it's well worth going to see it for it's gorgeous seaside location alone.

Ben an Dorchenn — Images

15.10.09ce

Musee Prehistorique — Fieldnotes

11.10.09ce

Now clearly 'La Musee Prehistorique' is not in itself a prehistoric monument, but the sheer number of prehistoric monuments which have been saved and re-erected in its grounds make it worthy of inclusion on the website – and not just as a 'facility'.

I'm not going to list them all, because there are so many – cists, menhirs, dolmens, stele, and get this, the complete restoration of an entire allee couverte which was saved from destruction and rebuilt here, stone by stone.

Address:
Musée de la Préhistoire Finistérienne
657 Rue du Musée Préhistorique
Pors Carn
29132 Penmarc'h

Phone: 02 98 58 60 35 / 06 83 54 63 39

Easy parking opposite.

Musee Prehistorique — Images

15.10.09ce

<b>Musee Prehistorique</b>Posted by Jane

This blog by no means charts all the monuments you can see in such a small area. Grab yourself a copy of Pierre-Roland Giot's book and check out the rest for yourself.

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Posted by Jane
18th October 2009ce

Crozon crazy

27 September

When out and about in Brittany I recommend not only Aubrey Burl's 'Megalithic Brittany' (we have the 1984 edition ) but also you must get a copy of Pierre-Roland Giot''s 'La Bretagne des Megaliths' published by Editions OUEST-FRANCE (Itineraires de Decouvertes), (ISBN 978-2-7373-4236-3). It's a complete inventory of all Brittany's prehistoric sites. In French.

A short drive south would take us to the megalithic wonderland of the Penmarc'h peninsula. It is perhaps only second to the Carnac area as the place mostly densely peppered with ancient monuments.

And that is the subject of my next blog...

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Posted by Jane
17th October 2009ce

14.10.09ce

Kerloas — Images

14.10.09ce

And yet the Kerdagiou menhirs are not the tallest still standing. That title goes to the mighty Kerloas menhir which is only a few kms away.

Kerloas — Fieldnotes

10.10.09ce

Oh la la, it's big. Very big. They say the tallest still standing menhir in the world. And I can believe it. It's 9.5ms, for goodness sake! That's 31 feet in old money. And it used to be taller still! A lightning strike a couple of centuries ago knocked 2ms off the top apparently. Quite apart from its sheer dizzying height, it is a curious shape; not even and slender like most of the menhirs, but wider than it is thick.

It has two curious sticky-outy hemispherical lumps carved on either side, each about the size of half a football. Each is at about belly height. I could well imagine superstitious people wanting to increase their fecundity coming to the menhir to rub their abdomens on the lumps in the hope of getting babies. They'd have been better off just having sex…

Lannoulouarn — Images

14.10.09ce

It had been an Obelix sort of a day.

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Posted by Jane
17th October 2009ce

Edited 4th November 2009ce

Druid, Druid, wherefore art thou? - Gristhorpe Man.

In 1834, members of Scarborough Philosophical Society examined the contents of a round barrow on Gristhorpe Cliff, between Scarborough and Filey. Their report ('The Discovery of a Tumulus at Gristhorpe', dated 1834. An article appeared in Gentlemens Magazine at about the same time) was written by a seventeen year-old William Crawford Williamson, son of the secretary. Young William would later go on to become Professor of Natural History at Manchester University.

The Gristhorpe barrow contained the skeleton of a man, wrapped in an animal skin, and placed in an oak-built, boat-shaped coffin. Grave goods included a bronze dagger with whalebone pommel, a food vessel made of bark, three flint implements, and a sizeable quantity of vegetable matter. The whole thing was covered with oak branches. (Note : the dagger has been dated at 1,640 b.c. ± 100).

The use of oak, both in the construction of the boat and in the covering, is interesting enough. But even more interesting was the fact that Williamson identified the vegetable matter as mistletoe. Originally anyway. And there lies the tale. Williamson re-issued his 1834 pamphlet in 1836. It was quoted in Crania Britannica by Messrs. Thurnam and Davis in 1856. The mistletoe identification stands up to that time – and then vanishes without trace. In 1872, Professor Williamson issued a completely revised version of his pamphlet, in which mistletoe was not mentioned. This was not an oversight. In his Reminiscences of a Yorkshire Naturalist of 1896, he again refers to the Gristhorpe excavation, but, again, omits all reference to mistletoe. Perhaps in later life he had come to consider the evidence inconclusive.

The Gristhorpe discoveries of 1834 had far-reaching implications. The Celts spread over quite a large area of Europe in the few centuries before Christ. But the Druids, who were thought to be Celtic priests, apparently did not. They were found only on the British mainland, in northern France, and in Ireland. So a question arose as to whether the 1st century b.c. Celts had brought their Druids here, or had found them here, and subsequently adopted the Druidic faith.

The Druids worshipped the oak and, particularly, the mistletoe. The fact that both were found in a religious setting, along with a dagger dating from at least 1,000 years before the Celts' arrival in Britain seemed conclusive ; the Druids were native Britons, not Celts. (Note : perhaps the best summary of discussion on this subject prior to 1930 is to be found in Kendrick's 'The Druids' [Chapter 6] dated 1927).

There, the matter rested for over a century. Then, in 1937, Mrs. Harriet Elgee upset everyone's apple-cart. At Loose Howe, near Rosedale Head, she discovered another boat burial with grave-goods very similar to those at Gristhorpe. Here, however, the wood covering was of hazel branches. This suggested that the wood covering in Bronze Age burial mounds could be of any type, a view seemingly supported by later finds which included floor coverings of hazel and of birch. Thus, the Gristhorpe-based thinking on Druidism was completely undermined. Perhaps Druids were Celts, after all (though the question of why they were not found in the majority of Celtic areas in Europe remained).

It would be another half-century before further significant headway was made on the subject. Then, Dr. Burl pointed to Imbolc alignments at Swinside (Cumbria) and at the Girdle Stanes (Dumfries-shire). Like the Gristhorpe dagger, these north-western stone circles pre-date the arrival of the Celts by at least 1,000 years. Imbolc can not, therefore, be a Celtic festival as previously thought. So now the argument has swung back towards an indigenous Druidism. Possible 107º alignments at Simon Howe, and at Tripsdale may well add fuel to Dr. Burl's fire.

'Celtic' priests, 'Celtic' festivals, 'Celtic' objects of worship, 'Celtic' languages – so much that was previously thought to be 1st century b.c. Celtic seems to be gradually fading back into the mists of time, and into the eternal mystery of the Britsh Isles countryside. Both Gristhorpe and Loose Howe have played prominent parts in this academic saga, and there may easily be more twists to come.

Note 1 : The Gristhorpe finds, including the re-constructed skeleton, are on permanent display at the Rotunda Museum, Scarborough. The Loose Howe exhibits are in the British Museum.

(Note 2 : the concept of a great spiritual journey by boat was later adopted by Christianity, and many early Christian stories involve sea journeys – The Voyage of Brendan probably being the most famous example. The word 'nave' [the main body of a church] is derived from Latin navis – a ship – as, of course, are the words 'navy' and 'navigation').

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Posted by hotaire
14th October 2009ce

Sub-megalithics in West Wales (or not?)

The term sub-megalithic or earth-fast was coined by Glyn Daniels and to quote him;

"What we have called the 'sub-megalithic' tombs, however, are in a different category. The essential constructional pecularity of these tombs is that the capstone instead of resting on two orthostats and appearing roughly level, has one end resting on the ground-the whole monument being triangle in section. For this strange and fairly rare kind of monument, which exists in Western France, Wales and Ireland - many names have been suggested such as primary, earth-fast,demi-dolmen or half-dolmen".......

There is a small group of sub-megalithic or earth-fast cromlechs to be found in Pembrokeshire and further afield. They are simply designed with the capstone normally supported by one or several orthostats with the back of the capstone resting on the earth or a ledge, they are very low to the ground the underlying ground having been dug or excavated out and the capstones raised on small uprights.

Garn Gilfach; Strumble Head(http://www.themodernantiquarian.com/site/4436/carn_gilfach.html) at Llanwnda backs on to a rock face, and the tomb itself is cut into the underlying rock but is supported by four uprights. Apparently it has an impressive view overlooking the lowlands to the south and west and St.David Head.

Garn Wen; Strumble Head(http://www.themodernantiquarian.com/site/2364/garn_wen.html) has a similar set of four earth-fast cromlechs, set low amongst verdant vegetation and overlooked by houses, these cromlechs are not very prepossessing. But again large low capstones supported by uprights and backing onto the ridge called Garn Wen with views out to the sea, the landscape setting would have been perfect.

Garnwynda; Strumble Head
Further along the coast and there is the single cromlech called Garnwynda. (http://www.themodernantiquarian.com/site/2365/garnwnda.html) Set against the rock face, it is rather 'hidden' and this feature is probably one of the strange things about this type of cromlech. It has only one upright supporting its large capstone, and according to Nash/Children is the only tomb of this type not to have intervisibilty with other tombs, though again it faces out to sea and commands a fine view. An excavation revealed evidence of a cremation dating it probably to late Neolithic early Bronze Age.

Carn Llidi;
(http://www.themodernantiquarian.com/site/3555/carn_llidi_tombs.html)
But it is the St.David's Head group that is intriguing, for we have three earth-fast cromlechs showing that it is not necessary to alway have the tomb against a rock face. Two cromlechs are to be found up on Carn Llidi, one facing you as you approach the old gun emplacements has its capstone resting on the earth, whilst the tomb behind against the rock face, seems to have had the capstone slip from the rock ledge behind, this is what Daniel believes, and it looks fairly obvious.

Coetan Arthur;(http://www.themodernantiquarian.com/site/1595/coetan_arthur.html) which is the third, a splendid tomb set amidst a jumble of rocks just under the promontory fort at the the tip of St.David's Head. There is a puzzle here, for it may not necessarily be an earth-fast tomb, for according to Nash/Children there are another two uprights lying on the ground not too far away and these could have supported the back of the tomb. It faces inland and looks up towards the valley. One fact about these particular type of tombs is whether they were covered with a mound, it seems unlikely given their locations and the thin soil on the rocky outcrops, Daniels has said that the tombs "were probably originally surrounded by a low accumulation of stones sufficient to ensure that the chambers were efficient burial vaults and that they were not disturbed by beasts of prey".

Why 'hidden', there are an interesting set of tombs called the Morfa Bycham A,B,C, & D, set amongst rocky debris and well hidden by merging into the surrounding landscape, a trait that can be seen at some of the above tombs. What does this tell us? Nash is of the opinion that they were deliberately concealed for ritual reason, only those with special knowledge would be able to find them, though it seems to me that should any hostile people come in from the sea, after all Ireland is just over the water, they were concealed from any hostile act, something we see much later in the history of Britain.

Ref;
The Megalith Builders of Western Europe - Glyn Daniels;
Neolithic Sites of Cardiganshire, Carmathenshire & Pembrokeshire - Geo.Children and Geo.Nash

p.s The Devil's Quoit at Manorbier has the classic earth-fast' credentials, being on the same coastline as the others and overlooking the sea on a steep hill, though whether it has a fallen third orthostat needs to be considered.
http://www.themodernantiquarian.com/site/1898/kings_quoit.html

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Posted by moss
27th September 2009ce

Edited 29th September 2009ce

Scubi's World Tour of Dartmoor

Visited Dartmoor on August Bank Holiday 2009, the weather wasn't great but was said to improve as the day went on.

First visited Spinster's Rock as I had a friend with me and wanted to impress them with a visually stunning piece of prehistoric workmanship, and they were. This is actually on Dartmoor but I think it is within the national park.
I have visited this site a few times and always without fail miss the little turning that leads up to the farm. There is a little lay-by with a sign pointing the way to the dolman so it's dead easy to find. In the past there have been a pony's or donkey in the field but not today. The dolman sits close to the hedge so you have to go right into the field before you see it. Standing on three uprights, it is large enough for somebody of my limited height to easily walk under.

After spending a little time at Spinster's Rock we headed for the moor.
After a very long and tortuous drive and having to negotiate some bridges barely wide enough to get my car through we arrived at Batworthy farm where there was a small area onto which you easily get 4-5 cars.

The hill fog was dense quite (about 100m) thick and there was a little light rain and a lot of wind but undaunted we put on our wet weather stuff and set forth. As we climbed the fog thickened and rather mystically a horse and ram appeared from the gloom, stared at us for a short time and then scurried up away back into the fog.

We were following the tree line on our right which at this point had stopped and almost double backs on itself. At this point we could continue to follow the trees towards Scorhill or continue straight out Southwards and onto the moor towards Shoveldown. As we had both a map and compass we headed for the moor.

As we went forth we kept our eyes out for the rows. I had not been here before so I wasn't sure what to look for exactly and the fog didn't help as it made everything in the distance look like a possibility. However as we continued it became obvious as we picked up the end of a perfectly straight double row of small stones. This was my first view of the Dartmoor stone rows and I was quite impressed with how neat and straight and parallel the stone rows were.

As we walk further on the row was interrupted by two large fallen stones and what at first looked like a jumble of smaller stones. However on close inspection this jumble was a series of concentric but incomplete rings. On the western side was another Stone row which seemed longer and more complete, disappearing southwards into the now quite thick fog.

My map and TMA notes showed a Standing stone farther south and as I was sure of my bearings we continued on. The stone row petered out with the odd stones or group of stones appearing as we went. Eventually we found the standing stone and quite impressive and somewhat eyrie in the bellowing mist. At a guess I would say it was about 10ft tall and had a series of packing stones around the bottom which is usual and seen at most places I have visited.

Another site mention was the Three Boys which was supposed to be close by. We decided to have a quick scout around in the fog but were careful not to wander too far off the path. Unfortunately we didn't find anything and decided we would go back to the original tree line via the rows and find our way to Scorhill.

As we headed NW along side the wall and trees we were stunned by the numbers of large stones. We also found what I thought might be a cairn with a stone lined cist in the centre but which isn't marked on the OS map.

Eventually we found our way to the Teign which had an impressive flow. I could see the Tolman on the other side but there was no way to cross here. We head up river and found the stone clapper bridge and made our way across. We had a quick look at the Tolman but I wasn't up for passing through it as one slip and I would be up to my arse in cold fast flowing water.

We headed up the hill and eventually came to a clear path. The fog was still too thick to see any great distance but after a short while we found Scorhill stone circle.
This was very impressive and quite atmospheric in these conditions. There is one tall stone about twice the height of the rest that has quite an unusual shape; one angle reminding me of a big foot for some reason. There are a couple of fallen stones, one with a series of holes in it that I assume were some sort of attempt to split it. This particular circle appears on the opening credits of the BBC Countryfile program and on which I thought the stones looked bigger but the circle looks smaller.

We contemplated walking further on to Buttern Hill and White Moor but I was unsure of the weather and reluctantly decided to go elsewhere. As I walked back to the car I thought to myself this was definitely a place to revisit on a clearer day.

We drove through the windy lanes, over the narrow bridges and around the reservoir eventually after what seemed like miles, ending up at a little parking area at the end of the road.
I calculated that Fernworthy was a short walk up the metalled bridleway to the west. After about 10 minutes the fur trees cleared and the tops of the stones could just be seen above the long grass. Unfortunately there were a group of people in the circle taking various measurements, so it was difficult to get a complete photo without somebody in the shot.

We went for a quick walk about to try and find the slotted stones mentioned on the Standing-With-Stones DVD. However the surrounding land was quite boggy and very wet plus there was a lot of overgrowth about and I didn't know exactly where these stones were. After a period of time we gave up looking and returned to the circle.

The people were still there, but we had a bit of a chat with them and apparently were carrying out a survey as part of a course assignment. I gave them a pointer as to where else they could look or as questions about the circle (including TMA of course). I took a few more photo's including the stone rows and we left for the car. Just at that moment the whole site was suddenly covered in a thick veil of cloud that had rolled in.
We were going to go to Greywethers but again due to the weather we decided to go else where and returned to the car.

Are next visit was somewhere I had visited for years and was determined to go to on the excursion to Dartmoor.

As we drove down the hill I could see the stone rows on the hill to my left. The fog had cleared and this sight and knowing what was waiting made my mind begin to race. We parked at a car park just before Merrivale village and almost falling out of the car in the rush I grabbed my bag and headed off up the gentle(ish) slope.

We approach the first stone row and it was good to see it without the mist. Having only the ones at Shoveldown to compare to this one, it felt longer if not straighter. However, wanting to see the whole area first, we preceded along and over a small brook that winds its way between both the rows and seemed to have some sort of meaning. I am not sure if this was significant (or even existed) when the rows were constructed but it seems to fit in with the rest of the environment very nicely.

The second stone row is a little more impressive with more shape and additional features on and about it. The central cist being one of these features and is quite small but sits right in between the double stone row.

Also around the middle section but off to one side is the much larger cist with the large broken stone on top. When we were there it was full of water and you risked getting your hair wet if you dared stick your head inside. From this cist it is possible to see both the stone circle and the tall outlier further on. I must admit to not being overly impressed with the stone circle but this was not the case with the outlier. It reminded me so much of Long Meg and I almost expected to see spirals and shaped carved upon it.

A little way to the east was a fallen stone that looked like it could be a smaller version of the other. There was a small circular group of stones and I did wonder whether this smaller (not so) standing stone was once standing in this position.
We walked back round to the other end of the rows to take some pictures and noticed another standing stone a short way away we walked over to it just as a cow and calf decided to use it as a rubbing post. Maybe this was really a rubbing stone I am not sure but again over towards the hill in the east (the one with the mast on it) was yet another standing stone.

This place is truly a little Mecca for stones and well worth a visit especially on such a fine day. Loads of photo's later we returned to the car for our final visit of the day.

After another dart across country we drove through Sheepstor and along a small lane then track towards the youth hostel. At the end of the track we found the small car park absolutely full with vans and cars. Eventually we squeezed in between two vehicles but had to leave the car jutting out due to a small grassy bank I thought to myself that if others have driven this far then they won't mind swerving around a car or two.

A quick check of the map and we headed off northward towards the moor.
Well the descriptions of it being somewhat damp under foot were not in exaggerations as in some parts my leg would disappear to the knee in a mossy water filled hole. Trying to keep your eye on both the horizon and where you feet were proving very difficult and resulted in a very hard going 'walk'.
After about 100 meters things started to improve a little and it became easier to spot the less wet bits and better concentration what was around us as it had been said this site was easily missed.

A small ridge with a stream below it ran along to our left heading north so in the hope that it would be dryer and better to see we headed for that. I took a bearing on Sheepstor and Combshead and was able to guesstimate the rough area of Yellowmead circle.

At first we found a couple of cairns which was great as the map showed that we were in the right area but we couldn't see the circle. We spread out a bit and suddenly my friend called out 'is that it?' Just above the vegetation the tops of a number of stones could be seen back towards the road.

It looked bigger (taller) than I imagined we made our way over but as we arrived it was obvious that the circle was slightly raised from where we were. However it was absolutely wonderful. It reminded me of the concentric rings we had seen at Shoveldown earlier but the rings were more obvious.
This was a lovely site in a good backdrop (Sheepstor) and well worth the visit.
The sun had gone back in now but I managed to get a few good photo's nonetheless.

We made our way back to the car but this time following the edge of the field between the circle and the track. When I return this will be the
easy way of finding it. Just follow the field boundary on the left from the parking area. After a while it will head west after about 100 meters head north again and you should be able to see the circle after a few minutes.
Well that is all from our little journey around Dartmoor. Like I always say after these things…I will be back.

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Posted by scubi63
11th September 2009ce

BRODGAR NESSy THOUGHTS

Regarding the Ness of Brodgar complex the present feeling is still that this seperates a landscape of the dead featuring the Ring of Brodgar from a land of the living featuring the Standing Stones of Stenness. However on the north side of the Brodgar bridge is a large mound that is now believed to be a chambered tomb. In modern times this first appears as Kokna-Cumming, described as a burnt mound. Probably not long after this mention the location was lost. Then an unrecorded excavation found an arrangement of circular walls, leading to its interpretation as a broch (there was another broch [Big Howe ,now only a rise in a field] near the Stones of Stenness). However when geophysics recently revealed evidence of tiering the resemblance to sites such as the Wideford Hill cairn led to the re-think. Until this season the most talked about feature of the Ness of Brodgar complex was still the extremely wide 'Great Wall' that ran across the ness from loch to loch at the site's northern end. Now attention has shifted to the 'cathedral', probably the largest Neolithic building yet found in Europe (or at least the UK), stretching across a large area of the site and disappearing under the present Lochview buildings. This has features resembling Maes Howe, to which it is aligned. This
year they did a small trial excavation on the other side of Lochview and found the 'lesser wall of Brodgar'. This isn't quite as wide as the 'Great Wall' but stands at least 1.4m high on the southern face - it has only been dug into a little, and only on that side, so could go down much further. This is at right angles to the Brodgar standing stone pair that sit in the Lochview garden, and if it cuts across the ness in similar fashion to the 'Great Wall' looks likely to bisect the area between them [I still suspect something of the gatepost pair on a rise at the Brodgar farm itself, even if they are only replacements or show where something could damage the plough]. The feeling is that this marks the southern edge of the Ness of Brodgar complex. If Kokna-Cumming is a tomb what is its relationship to the complex [with The Howe in mind are we sure that Big Howe was only a greenfield broch?[ and what would it mean to the proponents of a living/dead dichotomy for the main Stenness monuments ? Or could it be that the mound is not a tomb either but yet anothe addition to the Ness of Brodgar menagerie ?
The antiquarians recorded quaint names for the main Brodgar monuments [Broidgar in an early newspaper account]. These have been dismissed as fanciful inventions but could be Anglicisations or translations of proper Orcadian names, as has happened
with the likes of Mine Howe and Towerhill. The Standing Stones of Stenness was the Circle of the Moon. The large hearth is formed by four stones of standing stone dimensions and runs N/S E/W but as presently setup the 'altar'/'dolmen' stone setting is at a slight angle. Perhaps that is because as is hypothesised the latter had been used to frame Maes Howe. The Watch Stone, along with a large stub found during roadmaking, is thought to be perhaps part of the SE arc of another circle [call it the Watch Circle]. I haven't heard of any further stones being located by underwater survey and so assume this to have been even more incomplete than the Stones of Stenness [the current position on that circle] or been extensively robbed for a later site. The Comet Stone is a stone arrangement but always referred to as a standing stone because the original surveyor/antiquarian never completed his investigations. Next is the Ring of Brodgar, alias the Circle of the Moon. Finally up on the hill is the Ring [/Rim] of Bookan, a henge monument called the Circle of Stars. It has been noted that this is of similar dimensions to the Stones of Stenness and also has a central setting. Unfortunately a powerful 19th century laird adapted this to be the seat of his Thing, so its original complexion is unknown. The Comet Stone is the tallest surviving part on the mound of a NW/SE aligned setting, an unequal tee being obvious. To the NW it points to the Ring of Bookan, the Ring of Brodgar lies in the extended NW/SW quadrant. NE points towards the Staney Hill standing stone and to the Henge multi-period site of which it is likely a part [apart from a talk by the student involved there doesn't even appear to be even grey literature yet - hopefully when he completes his thesis...]. SE probably points to the 'Watch Circle', but more importantly the short arm of the tee frames the Ness of Brodgar perfectly [and probably the Stones of Stenness beyond too, though I couldn't see that far with what I had]. Could it be that the Comet Stone site is like a grand surveyor's tool ??

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Posted by wideford
1st September 2009ce

some notes from Skyreholme

Messrs Chappell, Stroud and I recently met up for one of our infrequent rock art forays into the Yorkshire countryside. I generally prefer solitary wanderings but never turn down a chance to walk with these two fine fellas, their depth of knowledge never fails to enlighten and the craic is always of the highest quality, modesty forbids me from detailing our discussion regarding proposed naming of new finds using the standard Bennettian nomenclature.

Our destination this time was Skyreholme. Individually we'd all visited this area, none of us had covered all of the ground and seen all of the carvings, we decided to put that to rights.
We parked up in the lay-by just by the junction of the Black Hill track and the B6265 and traipsed off across Black Hill.

The majority of the carvings are situated on or around Black Hill with another group running on east on either side of Forest Road track. The association of the carvings and the trackways may give some hint as to the antiquity of these routes.

For most of the southerly sites the views are across the Wharfe valley and the dominating presence is the craggy tops of Simon's Seat.

Skyreholme 422 — Images

03.08.09ce

<b>Skyreholme 422</b>Posted by fitzcoraldo

This particular hill has prehistoric associations, a Bronze Age cairn known as the Devil's Apronful sits on its south west flank. On the southerly side of the hill are a number of named stones including a rocking stone and, although not prehistoric, the becks that drain the southern flank run down through the beautifully named Valley of Desolation where they join the River Wharfe just above Lud stream brow.

One observation that we made at a number of the carvings was the presence in the west of the distinctive, conical Elbolton Hill. The hill stands out quite clearly from the surrounding round topped hills.

Skyreholme 407 — Images

03.08.09ce

<b>Skyreholme 407</b>Posted by fitzcoraldo

This hill was definitely significant in prehistory, the Elbolton Cave has yielded early Neolithic to early Bronze age artifacts including flints, pottery, animal bones, 11 inhumation burials and 1 cremation burial.
The hill is clearly visible from the Appletreewick stone circle and may also be visible from other monuments further along the Wharfe valley such as Dumpit Hill and Yarnbury Henge. My gut feeling was that this hill may have some significance to the Skyreholme rock art sites.

Another potentially significant location in the local landscape is Trollers Gill, a limestone ravine, rich in folklore (see below), on the western edge of Black Hill. None of us had walked through the gill so we took the opportunity of dropping down along a steep, dry valley from Black Hill into its shady glades at the southern end of the gill.
During periods of high rainfall the gill is made inaccessible by the fast flowing beck that courses through the ravine. On our visit the beck was low and had disappeared underground through a pot hole at the head of the ravine and then reappeared at the bottom of the gill.

The southern end of the gill opens out into a very pleasant meadow hemmed in by limestone walls, however the whole place takes on an otherworldly atmosphere as you walk into the cool, damp, overhung mouth of the narrowing ravine. We all agreed that it was an extremely pleasant place to escape the heat on a dry summers day but would probably feel very different on a stormy winters evening.

Regarding the gills possible associations with the Rock Art. I can think of two other places where you get rock art and ravines, Roughting Linn in Northumberland and Fylingdales Moor in North Yorkshire. Ethnologically there are also similar associations in other parts of the world, one that springs to mind is the Rainbow Snake myths of Australia, I'm sure Graeme can provide many other examples from his vast knowledge of world rock art mythologies.

This from http://www.yorkshire-dales.com/trollers-gill.html

Troller's Gill is a sinister little ravine at the head of Trollerdale. Legend has it that this narrow limestone gorge is the haunt of the "Barquest" or "Barguest" - the terrifying spectral hound of Craven (which is said to have "eyes as big as saucers").
The nooks, caves and crannies of Troller's Gill are also said to be the home of Scandinavian trolls, evil bloodsucking gnomes, flesh-eating boggarts, hideous gargoyle-like rock sprites, deranged goblins, predatory pixies and maliciously twisted imps - and perhaps even other sorts of similarly diabolical and fiendishly unpleasant beings lying in wait for the unsuspecting rambler...
Near the head of the gill there are a series of disused mine workings as well as natural caves and potholes - including the ominously named "Hell Hole"

All in all, this part of the Yorkshire Dales area is rich in pre and post historic sites, folklore, caves, and wonderful upland landscapes.
Tourists are fairly scarce in this area so once you leave the roads you can usually wander wherever you please.

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Posted by fitzcoraldo
19th August 2009ce

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