The Modern Antiquarian. Stone Circles, Ancient Sites, Neolithic Monuments, Ancient Monuments, Prehistoric Sites, Megalithic MysteriesThe Modern Antiquarian

Porlock Stone Circle

Stone Circle

Miscellaneous

Details of Stone Circle on Pastscape

[SS 8451 4466] Stone Circle (NR) The stone circle on Porlock Allotment, to the west of the road from Porlock to Exford discovered by Mr. E. T. McDermott, is 80ft. in diameter. The stones would probably have stood originally about 6 ft. apart, suggesting an approx. number of 43. The remaining stones consist of 10 standing stones and broken off stumps, and 11 prostrate stones. [See Illustrations Card.]
Some of the fallen stones illustrated by St. G. Gray have been removed but all the earthfast stones remain. The tallest upright stone is 0.8m high, but the largest stone is a recumbent stone (St. G. Gray's No. 13) which is 1.9m.long and 0.7m. wide. The mound shown by St. G. Gray at SS 8453 4467 is a robbed and
overgrown cairn. It has a maximum height of 0.4m and is listed by Grinsell as Porlock No. 3. Surveyed at 1/2500. (SS 84514466) Stone Circle (NR) (SS 84534468) Cairn (NR)
SS 844447. This circle was greatly disturbed during the 1939-45 war. Many of the stones have fallen around a 24.4m circle, one about 1.9m at the south south east.SS 84544469. Porlock 3. Mutilated cairn 10 paces diameter and 1 ft high, visited by Grinsell 25th April 1962. Porlock Stone Circle SS 84514466.
This monument is situated towards the S edge of Porlock Common, on flattish ground just above the gentle SW slope to Colley Water, which rises 300m to the ESE. There are views to the S and W across Porlock Allotment.
Of 21 stones in an earlier survey (2) only 14 remain. Seven are standing, seven are fallen. Three stones have fallen since the earlier survey. Most noticeable is the disappearance of five stones from the SW arc. One stone appears to be modern. All are of local sandstone.
The fallen stones appear to lie close to their original positions; together with the surviving uprights they form a true (though not perfect) circle of c24.5m diameter. The majority of the stones are quite small but typical of Exmoor, only the fallen stone reaching unusually large proportions. The standing stones all have their major axis aligned around the circumference of the circle. The status of the central stone, Grays `central picket' is not at all certain. Central stones do occur elsewhere but are not common (10) and in this case unconvincing.
A cairn formerly recorded with this circle is now recorded separately as SS 84 SW 129. It lies only 20m NE of the circle centre. `Recumbant stones' NE of the circle (11) could not be identified. There is a general scatter of stones around the site but none which can be reliably connected. (12)
Chance Posted by Chance
27th December 2014ce

Comments (0)

You must be logged in to add a comment