East Kennett Long Barrow

Nearest town:
Marlborough (8km ENE)
OS reference:
SU116668
OS sheet:
173
Latitude:
51° 23' 58.45 N
Longitude:
1° 49' 59.64 W

Images

Image of East Kennett Long Barrow by thesweetcheat

Dense summer vegetation on the mound. Prepare to be stung!

Image credit: A. Brookes (10.6.2023)
thesweetcheat
thesweetcheat Sep 1, 2024
Image of East Kennett Long Barrow by thesweetcheat

The western end of the barrow. Difficult to see at this resolution, but West Kennett long barrow (far left) and Silbury (left of centre) can be seen in the distance.

Image credit: A. Brookes (10.6.2023)
thesweetcheat
thesweetcheat Sep 1, 2024
Image of East Kennett Long Barrow by thesweetcheat

Approaching from the south, the thick canopy and dense midsummer vegetation a bit of a shock after my previous midwinter visits.

Image credit: A. Brookes (10.6.2023)
thesweetcheat
thesweetcheat Sep 1, 2024
Image of East Kennett Long Barrow by thesweetcheat

The long barrow in the centre, seen from Harestone Down to the SSW.

Image credit: A. Brookes (10.6.2023)
thesweetcheat
thesweetcheat Sep 1, 2024
Image of East Kennett Long Barrow by tjj

As seen from the part of the Ridgeway which extends beyond the village of East Kennett as far as the Knap Hill car park.

Image credit: tjj
tjj
tjj Mar 27, 2018
Image of East Kennett Long Barrow by A R Cane

Not as well known as it’s neighbour but certainly holding it’s own in magnificence!

Image credit: A R Cane
A R Cane
A R Cane Sep 19, 2017
Image of East Kennett Long Barrow by A R Cane

Viewed from the North as you head back down to East Kennett village.

Image credit: A R Cane
A R Cane
A R Cane Sep 19, 2017
Image of East Kennett Long Barrow by A R Cane

Sarsens built into the structure of the garden wall of a house in the village of East Kennett.

Image credit: A R Cane
A R Cane
A R Cane Sep 19, 2017
Image of East Kennett Long Barrow by thesweetcheat

Seen from the east, the long barrow is very prominent in the landscape.

Image credit: A. Brookes (22.12.2016)
thesweetcheat
thesweetcheat Dec 30, 2016
Image of East Kennett Long Barrow by thesweetcheat

East Kennett long barrow, centre skyline, seen from the southeast alongside the Ridgeway north of Little Avebury.

Image credit: A. Brookes (22.12.2016)
thesweetcheat
thesweetcheat Dec 30, 2016
Image of East Kennett Long Barrow by Chance
Image credit: Environment Agency copyright and/or database right 2015. Open Source Environment agency LIDAR
Chance
Chance Mar 25, 2016
Image of East Kennett Long Barrow by thesweetcheat

From the track that leads up to Harestone Down. The field boundary to the north of the longbarrow is interesting, a massive bank of earth more like a dyke than the base of a lost hedge.

Image credit: A. Brookes (20.12.2015)
thesweetcheat
thesweetcheat Jan 15, 2016
Image of East Kennett Long Barrow by thesweetcheat

The southeastern end of the barrow, where the mound is highest.

Image credit: A. Brookes (20.12.2015)
thesweetcheat
thesweetcheat Jan 15, 2016
Image of East Kennett Long Barrow by ruskus

The huge EKLB revealed through the late winter trees.

Image credit: ruskus
ruskus
ruskus Mar 14, 2013
Image of East Kennett Long Barrow by moss

This is the badger hole with its spill of gleaming white chalk, reminding one of the time when the barrow was built.

moss
moss Aug 1, 2010
Image of East Kennett Long Barrow by GLADMAN

Silbury peeps over the horizon... as you would expect.

Image credit: Robert Gladstone
GLADMAN
GLADMAN Jul 31, 2010
Image of East Kennett Long Barrow by GLADMAN

I’ve added this as ‘artistic’ since although it doesn’t really show any long barrow it sums up the vibe here for me.

Image credit: Robert Gladstone
GLADMAN
GLADMAN Jul 31, 2010
Image of East Kennett Long Barrow by GLADMAN

The great, tree-shrouded long barrow from the SW. [by the way, I did not trample any crops but used an existing gap!]

Image credit: Robert Gladstone
GLADMAN
GLADMAN Jul 31, 2010
Image of East Kennett Long Barrow by GLADMAN

The massive long barrow is subsumed within the copse of trees.. with a fine cloudscape towering above.

Image credit: Robert Gladstone
GLADMAN
GLADMAN Jul 31, 2010
Image of East Kennett Long Barrow by Littlestone

East Kennet Long Barrow (right). Silbury (centre) and West Kennet near the skyline to the left.

Image credit: Littlestone
Littlestone
Littlestone Jan 12, 2010
Image of East Kennett Long Barrow by tjj

East Kennet Long Barrow, just before the rain came.

Image credit: tjj
tjj
tjj Dec 2, 2009
Image of East Kennett Long Barrow by Moth

I once thought I’d never get to this bugger – certainly didn’t imagine I’d see it from the air!

Image credit: Tim Clark
Moth
Moth Aug 16, 2004
Image of East Kennett Long Barrow by notjamesbond

So the urge had finally caught up with me! A brief tour of the country had taken in a  brief glimpse of Silbury Hill and the shortest stop on record for visit to Avebury. How impressive both these sites are and how full of history the area must be. I felt shame that I did not know much about this area despite my professed interest in Neolithic monuments. I have a copy of TMA at home and I had glanced at the pages concerning this area but had never had the drive to get up and visit it for any sustained amount of time. This was not a good situation and had to come to an end!

Returning home to Yorkshire after my brief UK tour I made plans to return within the next few days. Gourging myself on knowledge from TMA and more helpfully from fieldnotes made by members of this site, I drew up an itinerary and set off to the Marlborough Downs, well, almost…

I had convinced my father to come along, he had a couple of days off work and I was on holiday from mine. We booked a youth hostel in Stow on the Wold, an attractive village in the Cotswolds and not a million miles away from the Rollright Stones. What a good place to start. True they are not part of the Avebury complex but they are well known and they would provide the perfect first stop off point. Upon reaching said monument I was appalled by what I saw…

The stones had been daubed with yellow paint, each and every one, an April fools gag by all accounts. A notice on the board near to the stones said that the cost of removing the paint would run to a minimum of £30,000. Why so high? Well the paint has seriously damaged the lichen growing on the stones. The lichen, which is said to be 800 years old, is one of the oldest recorded colonies in Britain. A £1000 reward has been posted to anyone who has information leading to the capture of the mindless fools who did this and a local coven of white witches have cursed the perpetrators for their actions.

As fortune would have it, the other monuments in the complex had not been touched by the paint smearing vandals. The King stone looked impressive in the afternoon sun but what a shame that it was caged behind iron bars. The stone is said to be that of a king in days gone by, a witch promised him Britain if he could see the nearby town of Long Compton. He couldn’t see it because his line of site was impaired by a nearby hill. The poor guy was turned to stone as his reward and his men became the rollrights. A bit harsh I thought, especially now that this area seems to be a favoured picnic spot amongst young couples. Mind you, who could blame them, the view down from the stone to the valley below is wonderful.

The other part of the complex are the Whispering Knights located in the field opposite from the Kings stone and at the same side of the road but further down from the Rollrights. These poor guys seemed to get ignored by the many tourists who came to look at the circle whilst we were there. I’m not sure that a lot of the people visiting actually knew that they were there quietly nestling at the far end of the field. I can’t quite understand this apathy as it really isn’t a long walk to them.

We arrived in Stow on the Wold only the check in and to go straight back out. I had spotted a couple of alleged monuments on the ‘Cotswolds Tourist Map’ recently purchased from the local information centre. This whole area is deep in old roman territory and there are plenty of links to that era, from villas to the road on which we travelled south the monuments spotted on our map, the Fosse Way.

Our first destination of the ever darkening evening was to see something called the Hangmans stone! Very macabre we anticipated it being a most impressive monument, alas what we got couldn’t have been further from the truth. If the truth is known the monument was so unimpressive I can’t even be sure whether we found it or not. Although I am convinced that we did find two sarsens, of sorts, however these were most certinaly not in their original positions. They had been the victims of field clearance and now made up a wall which penned in a number of growing saplings.

We had a job to find these stones. The map directed us to the village of Northleach, we took the road to Oxpens Farm and it was just after the turn off for there that we parked. Having searched around the area for the Hangmans stone, it was concluded that the only sarsens of note that this could be were they stones making up this wall. I would very much like to be proved wrong some day by antiquarians with much better stone finding abilities than me but for now it appears that these make up Hangmans stone.

Following on from this disappointment we headed towards the next alleged monument, the Hoar Stone. This was situated off the A417 towards Cirencester, taking the turnoff towards Duntisbourne Leer. The ‘stone’ is situated to the left in the middle of a field before the first turnoff to your left once through the village. Of course its not just a stone but a long barrow, and it is noticeable. The capstone is still there along with another dominant stone which now has a tree growing next to it. After the debacle of the Hangmans stone, this was a very pleasing result!!!

We then headed to the village of Bisley, not a million miles away, but, because of the way the roads ran, it may have well been. As the crow flies the distance between the Giants Stone near to Bisley and the Hoar stone was not far at all but the fact that it took 40 minutes to get there testifys to the difficulty of navigating the roads in this part of the world.

The Giants stone is allegedly located on the road out of Bisley towards Battlescombe. This road ends and there the stone should be on the right. It was a case of déjà vu because despite a thorough sweep of the area I could not find it for love nor money. I did find however a number of inquisitive sheep and a road that should have ended but didn’t which added to my confusion. Next time I shall arm myself with an OS map and use the visitors map for reference only.

We returned via the viewpoint at Barrow Wake near Gloucester and bedded down for the night, in, as it customary in youth hostels, a dormitory full of men!!!

I awoke of 5 to the sound of rumbling, I attempted to get back to sleep but could not. What was this noise? Could it be my stomach? No I had eaten before I retired! Could it be an earthquake? Don’t be silly we don’t get earthquakes here, not severe ones anyway! Could it be the guy in the bunk opposite snoring his head off and preventing me from a good nights kip? Of course it was!!!

Actually although I was bitter at the time, the gentleman and his nasal orchestra did me a favour by not allowing me back to sleep. For without this disruption I would not have gotten up, and if I had not have got up, I would not have set off in the early hours to the Uffington White Horse.

The roads were clear and dawn was beginning to break as we left the hostel. We wound our way through the many picture postcard villages of the area and ended up at the White Horse for 7 in the morning. Not another soul was around, it was slighty damp and dreary but this mattered not one jot as the peace was serene. With great forethought we had prepared a flask with the intention of enjoying a cup of tea at the top, there our plan was to drink it and soak up the wonderful views of the valley known as the Manger below.

Legend abounds this area, the favourite of mine being that the horse is actually a representation of the Dragon slain by St. George. The place of said slaying was upon the nearby Dragon Hill. This seemingly unnaturally shaped hill boasts a large chalk patch upon its summit on which nothing will grow. This patch is said to be the place where the Dragons blood fell and hence will remain forever barren.

Further up from the White Horse towards the Ridgeway is Uffington Castle, an iron age hill fort upon which evidence of great wooden structures were found, as well as an iron age coin. People residing in this place chose a good vantage point, it was possible to see for miles even on a damp overcast days such as this.

The next point of call when in this area has to be Waylands Smithy! We joined the Ridgeway having crossed over the castle ramparts and headed west to walk the one and a half miles towards it. The walk dragged a bit. The Ridgeway in this section is not particularly exciting and therefore seems longer than it is. At one point we thought we’d taken a wrong turn and had to ask a jogger for confirmation of where the Smithy was. Sure enough though it was there sitting within a copse in the middle of a field. The Smithy was also looking surprisingly well maintained for its age. I wondered aloud if this was because of its proximity to the White Horse.

Excavations in 1919 revealed the skeletons of 8 adults and 1 child within the two main chambers and further excavations in 1962 revealed 14 more. The place gets its name from the blacksmith who lived there. It was said that if you left your horse tethered along with some coins on the stone overnight, then the horse would be found shod come morning.

Waylands Smithy is of course not really a Smithy but a long barrow and is believed to date from around 3400BCE. From within its chambers we poured another cup of tea and decided upon which spot would be easiest to get to next…

Now Swindon is not the sort of town you would normally associate with the Neolithic, true its proximity to some of the great sites is enviable but Swindon is very much a sprawling ‘new town’. It therefore came as a great surprise to see a stone circle marked on the OS map just south of the place between Coate and Coate Country Park at 183.824.

The circle is very easy to miss for there is nothing on the site to say what it is and the stones are unspectacular at best. We drove straight past and headed towards the huge ringroad at the end of the lane which was of course far too far. On our return we spotted the stones laying in an ark in the farmers field opposite the first barn we came to. Five stones were all that I could see but I dare say it would have been fairly sizeable. From the remaining stones you can indeed get a good idea of its size. A brief glance over towards the farm buildings revealed nothing that could have been the second half of the circle but condsidering the building work going on in that area this was not suprising.

Time was now stretching on and we decided to try and get a bite to eat. Our next destination was to be the hill fort at Barbury Castle, an area which is now a country park. Upon arriving our delight was assured by the presence of a café which sold full English breakfasts. We were not the only people there, the area seemed to be popular with dog walkers and families.

The area has been settled for many years probably due to its dominant position overlooked everything it surveys. Bronze age disc barrows have been discovered at the site as well as later Iron age burials. Legend has it also that the site was the scene of a great battle between the Saxons and the celts in around 550CE. A battle, which, may have gone a long way to the establishment of the kingdom of Wessex.

From the castle we set off towards Winterbourne Bassett where we had heard there was a stone circle. Again using the fieldnotes taken from this site (very helpful thank you) we found the place without any difficulty. Marking the site is an outlying stone at the junction of the road, opposite, over a style in the field the two nearest stones of the circle can be seen. Upon further inspection I found four more. Although the site has probably suffered damage in years past I was able to gain a sense of how it could have looked. There are three outlying stones which form a triangle around the four inner stones. The four inner stones are positioned in such a way that it would be feasible to assume that at some point there would have been a fifth which would have made up the circle.

Afterward we decided to head toward the white horse figure carved onto the nearby hackpen hill which overlooks this area. As we drove toward it at OS ref 118.757 in the field to our left we saw what appeared to be a standing stone. There was no reference to it anywhere so far as I could see, but it was there, approximately 50 yards from the road. I have posted it on this site to see what everyone else thinks. The horse in the background certinaly gave it a good backdrop although that is anything but Neolithic.

One place that had intrigued me since reading about it in the TMA was that of Marlborough Mount, alleged to be a close relative of Silbury Hill yet laying neglected in the grounds of a private school. The mound from which the town takes its name is indeed seemingly forgotten about by the locals. There is no plaque, the mound is overgrown and untidy and on top is a horrendous construction which I believe is a water tank.

The setting however within Marlborough college promises much. Although you wouldn’t expect to walk into a school to see such a monument as soon as you do it becomes apparent that this is no ordinary school. It is the sort of school with rebellious rich kids sporting foppish hairstyles, blazers, oversize suits and shirt tails hanging out over their trousers. The sort of school which best resembles the typical English sterotype of the way all schools in this country are no matter how untrue.

The grounds are lovingly and painstakingly manicured, but the mound that was there before the school was even thought of, has been left to overgrow and the vast majority of the pupils there probably have no idea of its potential importance.

From the mount after wandering through the lovely town of Marlborough we headed towards the Devils Den, a dolmen of which I am convinced only part of remains. The rest of the structure seems to be lying in clearance at the edge of the field.

We parked upon the verge of the road next to the farm and walked the alleged one and a half miles towards the monument, our guidance on distance being taken from a very weathered signpost at the entrance of the track leading to the site.

Just beyond a quaint looking barn in a field beyond and to the left lies the dolmen. It looks impressive just as structures like these should look. Seeing the rest of the stones laying along the side of the field however make you despair. That they must have been once something to do with this monument seems obvious. I wonder how much grander it would have appeared with them in situ.

But the day was now beginning to become long. There are lots of things to see in this area and in the limited time that we had, we sure were packing them in. Soon it would be time to bed down in the sweet B & B we had booked in the tiny hamlet of Winterbourne Abbas.

Tomorrow would be just as full a day but first we had more pressing things to do like visit Avebury, the legendary Silbury Hill and a former timber temple on a place called Overton Hill, the Sanctuary.

The sanctuary was just that, in days gone by, a huge timber structure, the postholes of which have now been filled with horrendous concrete blocks. The Sanctuary looks down upon the valley below and must have played a significant part in the pre-history of this area. Of course it would have been more Sanctuary like had the A4 not been directly next to it and the lorries did not thunder past at such breakneck speeds.

Next door to the circle are the Seorfon Barrows immediately noticeable if approaching from Marlborough. The burial mounds sit proud upon the brow of the hill and appear to form the arched back of some long forgotten serpent. I counted four on the other side of the road from the Sanctuary and a much more overgrown one on the path leading down the Sanctuary side.

Now for the main event, my father despite cycling around the area in his youth had never visited the place. He had heard about it of course but without ever really seeing Avebury I can imagine that it is difficult to understand just how impressive this site is. As soon as you enter and see the town, whether it be along the Avenue of Stones or any other way, the sight is breathtaking and awe-inspiring.

We chose to park in the NT car park and set off not towards the town, but towards Silbury Hill. There is a path that leads there from opposite the entrance to the car park. The path runs along the lovely River Kennett and the hill is only a short hike really. The river can be crossed at a sweet little bridge and the path turns and heads towards West Kennett and the Silbury Hill car park. Access to the hill is now forbidden in order to help preserve the monument. Truly this is an amazing structure and along with the Avebury stones has to go down as one of the wonders of England.

Back over the bridge the path leads up toward Waden Hill, Silburys more natural neighbour. At the time we clambered up the hill was lush with green and the flowers of Spring. Given the lovely blue sky nothing could have been more perfect at that moment. The view of Silbury in the background was exquisite and once on top the view of the surrounding area, divine.

We headed down from the hill into the Avenue of Stones and walked through until we came to the edge of the village. We entered and walked along the path at the top of the earthwork on the rim of the village, breathtaking. Some of the stones are now fenced off in order to protect them but the majority you can reach out and touch. The village itself is delightful some nice and interesting books and spiritual bits and pieces can be found in the local shops.

From the village our last stop of the day was to be West Kennett long barrow. We hopped in the car and drove the short distance there (our legs now far too tired to carry us far) and parked in the layby at the side of the road. As the time was now dusk, the only people we saw were walking back from the barrow. Once there we had the place to ourselves. The chambers are impressive, as is the façade and the barrow itself is lovingly maintained, the view from the top was wonderful too. During excavation of the barrow in 1956, the remains of 46 people were found within its chambers.

Having finished for the day we headed back to Marlborough and dined in the Bear pub apparently renowned for its fish and chips. We enjoyed them and a starter of leek soup before we were joined by the local town crier on an ale tasting mission. By all accounts as part of his responsibilities he has to taste the ale and issue a certificate accordingly. We wondered at the time if after he’d done he’d go to the local kebab house and sample one of those too.

The siting for our stay that evening could not have been better. Winterbourne Abbas allowed us to investigate the areas of interest around the Vale of Pewsey of which there were many.

Having polished off a lovely organic full English breakfast in the morning we headed to our first point of call which was Pewsey Church. We had heard that sarsen stones made up the base of the church at certain points and we were eager to take a look.

Sure enough as you walked up to the entrance of the church and went along the right hand wall there they were. Three stones making up keystones to the base of the church. As the church was on a hill I wondered aloud whether, if there ever was a stone circle in Pewsey, then this may have been the location. Local legend has it that one was destroyed so its not an unfeasible thought I daresay.

Further into the village beyond the co-op car park and nestling next to the bridge crossing the stream stand what could possibly be the remains of the monument. They form a border with the path at this point and to my mind must have been placed there by town planners. Clearance stones probably connected with these possibly with the stones at Pewsey church nestled unloved in the background. The stones themselves were nestled at the foot of the hill upon which the church now stands. Maybe this was the location of an original circle and the keystones were moved up to the church who knows!!

Heading out of the village we set off for a place known as Swanborough Tump. A great battle was fought here in the year 871 and people with the name Swanborough can link there ancestary back to this. I wasn’t expecting to be able to see much. The fieldnotes had warned me of this but what I could see opposite was the brows of two conical imposing hills, Picked Hill and Woodborough hill. Picked Hill particularly was imposing its conical shape reminded me of Silbury and Marlborough Mount. Its neighbour Woodborough too had the same shape. I again wondered whether all these hills could have one point been linked.

Heading past the tump we decended upon the village of Woodborough. Here a holed stone lays at the side of the road with a plaque in front dedicating it to the memory of people who fought for peace and freedom in the fifty years since the end of world war 2. The map reference for the stone is 108.568.

History abounds this place and from Woodborough we headed to a place which this time was actually marked on the Ordance Survey. A place known as the hanging stone. We actually took a wrong turn and ended up at the nearby Hursts Farm. There we encountered the farmers wife and her children with their quad bikes. We asked for directions and although the farmers wife didn’t know anything about the stone the kids certinaly did. They directed us to it and also told us a legend about how years ago a sheep thief got his cape stuck on the stone when trying to escape the clutches of an angry farmer. It got stuck so fast that the cape actually strangled the thief to death hence the name hanging stone

The stone was approximately a half mile down the track heading straight on past the barn. To the right a number of sarsens the victims of field clearance and at one point probably part of this monument nestled forgotten in a copse. Further up the Hanging stone protruded through the ploughed field. We headed on up thankful that the weather had dried out the land otherwise we would have gotten very muddy.

Returning to the car from the stone we headed to our next Christianised site, that of St. Marys Church, Alton Priors. It is confusing because there are too churches and one is signposted from the road ‘St. Marys Saxon Church’ go there if you like but this is not the one of Neolithic interest.

A further bonus other than the church and the pleasant setting about Alton Priors is the sarsen stone sitting directly in the middle of the village. We discovered from an elderly local that the stone had been originally placed in a nearby field and removed unfortunately he did not remember in which field it was discovered. Upon the stone is a carving of the horse which stands proud on the hill overlooking the village. The horse was carved by an American expert in crop circles who comes to the village every year to discuss the crop circle frenzy around these parts. The centre of his organisation actually meet in a pub nearby called the Barge Inn alas we didn’t have time to go in.

Down from the sarsen is the church, situated in a lovely field absolutely choca-block full of barrows. The church grounds are fenced off from the field and you need to clamber over a style to get into them. It’s a pretty church of that there is no doubt, in the grounds there is a lovely Yew tree which, it is claimed, is 1700 years old.

Inside the church, which is no longer in constant use, the first trap door in the floor can be seen. Lifting it up reveals the sarsen itself. Whoever laid this floor had good foresight in thinking that people may come here just to see that. There is another trapdoor nearer the front of the church but it cannot be lifted up as there is a makeshift step which has been built over it.

Next step was another highlight of the trip. Again having read about the place in TMA I was intrigued and wanted to go. The location? Hatfield Barrow near the village of Marden. A structure not unlike Silbury in its day and scandalously destroyed. Whats worse, the remains of said barrow where bulldozed to one side by the farmer in later years.

I expected to have trouble finding it as all the sources said that there was nothing left to see. However we did have an approximate location on a makeshift map and when we arrived at the point on the map, directly opposite in a field was an information plaque. The plaque told the unhappy tale of this once great monument and we had found it much easier than expected.

There were mounds and ridges to be seen alright but I found it difficult to determine the exact location of the barrow especially following the bulldozing. But, at least I had been, in the flat landscape it would have stood out like a beacon. I can well imagine this too being part of the great Avebury complex.

We set off back up the road towards Knap Hill and prepared ourselves for a bit of walking. The weather was pleasant and in this particular area there were many hills of importance that we needed to climb. Knap Hill was the closest so we parked the car at the foot of the hill and clambered up. At the top of all the hills in this area are earthworks we clambered past the ditches and headed for the top from which we had the most tremendous of views. Golden Ball Hill, Adams Grave, Picked Hill and I should think at one point we would have been able to see Hatfield Barrow.

Along from the summit we headed for Golden Ball Hill. Slightly higher this is special because evidence of really ancient civilisations have been found here in the form of flint floors. Nothing much remains of the excavations now and it was quite impossible to guess where the excavations where other than assume the various indentions in the ground where them. I’d have liked there to have been a plaque or information board on some sort. If this place is indeed where the first settlers came to then I’d consider that a more than important piece of history.

From the top the views where again magnificent although, perhaps on account of the odd bush and tree the wind was not as severe as when on Knap Hill. From the summit both Knap and Adams Grave from the angle looking like a humped back bridge.

Wandering down the side of Golden Ball Hill earthworks dominate there are lots of them. The early settlers perhaps choosing here because of the view and the fact that it was actually quite sheltered from the wind.

We headed onto Adams Grave, the site of the huge barrow which was discovered on top. Again the walk was relatively easy and the earthworks are substantial, this whole area must have been a place of major importance. At the summit of the barrow again the view was breathtaking. We rested for some time at the top, not through tiredness but through awe. We really were looking through the eyes of the ancients for they had been here and all around this place.

It was with a heavy heart that we descended Adams Grave, hopping into the car with the intention of finding somewhere to stop for a cuppa. Our plan was to find a stream fill our kettle with water and boil it using the primus stove we had brought for such an occasion.

The only stream that we could think of was that near to Silbury and that wasn’t a stream at all but a river. We made the decision to head back but on the way noticed an extreme amount of sarsen stones in a field near the village of Lockeridge. This came as a surprise I had not counted on seeing something like this, I wondered what monument this could be.

A plaque at the entrance to the sarsen field revealed that the area was under the protection of the national trust and that the sarsens were the remnants of sandstone deposits formed on the chalk over 30 million years ago. This is the same sort of sarsen that had been used for building material for the past 5000 years. I wondered whether any of the many sarsens around the area could have been taken from this place. It clearly was an important area and in very good proximity to Avebury itself.

We drove on and came to rest in the NT car park in Avebury, water was collected from the river and we drove to Longstone Cove where the plan was to boil it and make tea.

Whilst we sipped I read that Longstone Cove used to be made up of three giant stones not just the two that are now present. The other being used for building material by a Victorian vandal. The two remaining ones don’t look that big even from the path but once you approach they are tremendous.

Down the way from the stones is Beckhampton barrow. It seems that now it is much easier to get to than a few years ago. The footpath runs along the side of the farm and there is a gap in the fence to the field on the left which you can wander through. The barrow can be clearly seen in the distance dominating the field with its thick copse of trees growing on top. There is a path that leads alongside so we took it but left it later on to get a better look.

It was difficult to tell where the entrance had been but I later read that it had been destroyed some time before. The whole shape remains though, there are many barrows which don’t look like anything but this still does.

Our final destination before heading for the next hostel such outside of Wantage was another long barrow, this time at East Kennett. We headed for the village and parked outside the church. There is a footpath which runs through the farm but which does not officially run past the barrow. We cut through the farm and took a left turn following the tracker trail up towards the barrow. Sitting imposingly on the hilltop. From the barrow we could see all around Silbury and its neighbour at West Kennett. I was disappointed that there were not even any fallen sarsens that I could see which may have made up a façade of some description.

I was content though, the barrow was an impressive one. Huge but overgrown, full of history and possibilities. I’d packed a lot into this tour from Marlborough to Marden we had walked in the footsteps of the ancients.

notjamesbond
notjamesbond Apr 19, 2004
Image of East Kennett Long Barrow by Moth

The long barrow looking north(ish)

Image credit: Tim Clark
Moth
Moth Aug 6, 2003

Articles

East Kennett Long Barrow

ruskus
ruskus Mar 13, 2013

From East Kennett church I took the byway up to the right, circling East Kennett Longbarrow from a distance. I overshot it to explore Harestone Down SC, and if my way onward to Little Avebury hadn’t been blocked, I probably wouldn’t have ventured any closer to the great mound – just taking a picture from afar. Instead I had to descend the track back towards Manor farm, passing by the end of the barrow.
After passing by and looking back up to it against the sky, level with the horizon, suddenly it began to dawn on me how big the thing actually was.
Although, obviously a different beast from WKLB, EKLB has such an unexplorable wildness to it.
Could’ve spent longer, but saw the farmer milling around below, and the wind was biting now, so walked on (...past the sign saying “no admittance”). Whoops.....looked ok on the map, and the farmer said nothing, so.....

East Kennett Long Barrow

GLADMAN
GLADMAN Aug 1, 2010

Sitting upon the Barrow Copse long barrow, wondering where to go next... as you do... it suddenly dawns upon me that I’ve never been to East Kennett. Eh? How did that happen? Ah, that’s right... access ‘issues’. But now I’ve thought of it it’d be rude not to go say ‘hello’ to arguably the most mysterious and enigmatic of the area’s prehistoric treasures – I mean, even Silbury’s been excavated, if only to generate a myriad further questions..... not to mention almost destroy the monument in the process. But that’s another story.

Parking near the ‘no coins accepted’ ‘phone box – a paradoxical sign of the times in ‘timeless’, chocolate box East Kennett – a short stroll past the church and patrolling ‘guard geese’ and ducks gives access to a byway, this bisecting the ‘White Horse Trail’ a little further on. Turn left at this point and the majestic tree-line, which I assume must cloak the long barrow, becomes the primary focus now. There are no signs forbidding access from the main track and no fence. How refreshing. Logical, too, since the visitor can skirt the bountiful crop with ease by following the field boundary past a particularly gaunt hawthorn. The retrospective is of the iconic Silbury across golden fields of wheat, or barley. No, I think it’s wheat. Where’s Sting when you need him? He’d know.

The long barrow is completely shrouded by it’s green canopy of high summer, as if Nature is reluctant in the extreme to grant an audience with her monument. No, you’re not gonna destroy THIS one, too, you swine that you are! A glance back across the Downs to poor West Kennett Long Barrow swarming with figures and I know exactly what Rhiannon means upon reading her own excellent account. But what if the great Boyne tombs hadn’t have been excavated? And look what happened to The Thornborough Henges, quietly bought up by a commercial company when nobody was looking. Sadly it would appear that precious treasures cannot be ‘left alone’ in this cynical world in the hope that things will stay as they are. People will take advantage, sooner or later, with an eye on the eternal ‘profit’, methinks. In my opinion East Kennett must be highlighted, celebrated for the exceptional monument it is and the message sent out that ‘we are watching’. It was never designed to be the beautiful sister of WKLB hiding away at home. Surely?

I wish I could say that this was a perfect visit, but the noise from a nearby speedway meeting (I kid you not!) competed with the wind in the trees for a time. In the centre of a World Heritage Area? What is it with people who couldn’t give a monkey’s about any one else? The contrast when the tannoy announces which respective muppet has ‘won’ and they all go home is, well.... Rhiannon’s notes say all I wanted to say about the barrow itself, except a pair of overtrousers is a good idea to brave the head high (!!) nettles which colonise the massive mound in summer. The trees add much atmosphere, particularly when acting as foreground to a very large barrow marooned within crop to the SW. According to the map there is another example the other side of the long barrow.

A walk around the site emphasises just how massive East Kennett is. Will it ever be excavated? Apart from by the numerous beasties which call it ‘home’. It is an exciting prospect, although things will then never be the same again, will they? Then again the current status quo would not appear to be the intention of the original builders. Something this substantial was clearly meant to be seen, not hidden away for the personal enjoyment of the few! Yeah, you shall go to the ball! EKLB wears an exclusive shining gown of white chalk by established designer M Downs..... not available in the shops for another six millennia.

East Kennett Long Barrow

Rhiannon
Rhiannon Mar 16, 2010

East Kennett and West Kennett couldn’t be much more different really, not in our century at least. I wondered whether to write these fieldnotes, it’s like drawing unnecessary attention to something that’s quite happy nice and quiet and unknown, despite its proximity to the show sites of Avebury. Not to mention the fact it’s off the footpaths and I shouldn’t really have been there at all. But your tma-ish type values EK for what it is. And most normal people don’t want to trudge to an overgrown hillock somewhere up a muddy track. Besides, there’s nowhere obvious to leave a tealight. So maybe EK’s ok.

Even as you walk up here, you can see that the place is massively, surprisingly, tall. I thought it was an optical illusion until I got very close up and then I had to believe it. As you’re walking up the track, the barrow glowers ominously above you. But on arriving, the near end seems like the less important back, it shuns the view of West Kennett’s fancy frontage and Silbury hill. With the wintery lack of undergrowth I could walk along the barrow’s crest, to the far end which is higher and more sheltered. That has a much more enclosed feeling. There’s a kind of amphitheatre effect, with the skyline at a single level all around. But curiously the skyline isn’t consistently close, some of it’s made up of much further away bits of landscape, but it all overlaps to give this constant line. It’s totally different to the open feel of the other end, with its distant views to all sorts of places that make you go ooh! when you recognise them.

It was very quiet indeed at the far end. It’s riddled with burrows. Flakes of chalk and pointy flint nodules are everywhere (as are spent shotgun cartridges). A rabbit sprang out of one of the holes just in front of me and I don’t know who was more startled. Partridges muttered in the field below but otherwise it was just that distant treetop noise like the sea. My crisps ruined the atmosphere really. I liked the distorted writing on some of the beeches and all the tiny snail shells with their strange little umbilical holes.

On the way back (after another guilt-ridden dash silhouetted against the sky) there were loads of yellowhammers to be seen and heard along the White Horse track. If you keep going straight down, the path comes out where the road crosses the Kennet. It’s amazing to watch, a beautifully crystal clear chalk stream with its vegetation waving about in the current. It was a nicer way to walk back to where I’d parked near the church.

East Kennett Long Barrow

tjj
tjj Dec 2, 2009

Another Avebury first for me today; a few hours to spare this morning so headed out to the downs on the 49 bus (fantastic views of layers of mist lifting). The morning still bright when I met up with a couple of friends – we headed out to Gunsight Lane near East Kennet village. From here they led the way up field-side tracks towards East Kennet Long Barrow. Like most of the less accessible sites within the Avebury WHS it is the walk to them that makes the experience so special. Today was no exception, en route there is a very different view of West Kennet Long Barrow across the sparse fields – no road, no cars, no visitors; just a view of an ancient long barrow as it must have looked for the past few millennia.

From the direction we were walking, East Kennet Long Barrow seemed to appear suddenly – too large to photograph in its entirety, the now leafless beech trees holding it fast. Apart from some badger damage it remains intact, we all all agreed that we hoped it would remain so. Long may it keep its secrets, its atmosphere and its sense of apartness.

[Once again acknowledgements to PeteG for his expertise on the Avebury landscape and for his willingness to share it]

East Kennett Long Barrow

NightGirl
NightGirl May 12, 2009

I headed up to East Kennett Longbarrow by following the bridle path from Gunstile Road, in May 2009.
It appears that the farmer whose land this stands on now accepts that people are going to come and visit the barrow, as the corner of the field the barrow stands in is no longer being cultivated, and is indeed marked off by what can only be described as a path all the way around the barrow.
As others have stated, the barrow itself is huge, in terms of height and length, and it’s amazing to think it hasn’t really been investigated, and it’s all the more wondrous for it.
It was quite a hike South out of my way to visit, but well worth the effort for the solitude and the mystery.

East Kennett Long Barrow

moss
moss Sep 16, 2005

Not one for writing fieldnotes, but this longbarrow is one of the largest around and is truly magnificent if you allow your imagination to roam. It sits on the slope facing the small East Kennet church at the bottom, there can be no doubt which religion was more powerful in its day. The thing that struck me was how like Stoney Littleton it was, with the larger end at the top, so that the approach would have been downwards into the barrow, that of entering into the earth, or womb if you believe that was the intention.
Moss and I walked from Silbury Hill, thro the water meadows, past Silbaby, following the White Horse trail.
The landscape around East kennet longbarrow is both vast and open, earth meeting sky, but you need a horse to get around it!
The photo of Silbury Hill from the barrow is included because as the clouds chased over in a cold north wind, the sun suddenly illuminated a patch of chalk on its flanks, sparkling white, thought at first it was someone in a white dress on the hill, but when I got closer it was chalk. The chalk capping the hill when it was first built would have indeed made a spectacular sight.

East Kennett Long Barrow

Moth
Moth Aug 5, 2003

Sunday 27 July 2003
Coming from the Sanctuary, I reached East Kennett village and took a right turn. I parked just down from the church and walked up the lane and through Manor Farm, joining a bridlepath up the hill to the west. The tree topped East Kennett Long Barrow was clearly visible to my left.

After a very short distance an overgrown but obvious track appears on the left, leading alongside the ‘top’ edge of the field where the long barrow stands.

As the path reached the field the barrow is in, there was no hedgerow or fence and the crop had nice wide, deep and clear tractor tracks.

I decided that should anyone disapprove, if I hustled along, the chances of me being spotted were slim. (I’ve now read that it’s best to ask permission, so if I go again I will!)

Two minutes later I was on the north west end of the barrow amongst the trees. Reaching the top I soon found my way barred by impenetrable undergrowth thick with stinging nettles. I don’t think I could’ve forced my way through, even if I hadn’t been wearing shorts, As it was – no way!

I made my way back down to the foot of the barrow and turned right, along it’s north east side. It was a struggle to make my way without damaging the crop and without stinging myself to death on the nettles that also line the edge of the barrow.

Reaching the south west end of the long barrow I found that there is actually some space to stand and look at this end. This ‘felt’ like the ‘front’ of the barrow, though I have no idea whether it is or not.

I couldn’t see the chamber stones that apparently protrude at this end, but the vegetation was rampant, and once again of the stinging kind. Winter visit?

Miscellaneous

East Kennett Long Barrow
Long Barrow
Rhiannon
Rhiannon Mar 13, 2006

Dean Mereweather says that it lies “about three quarters of a mile south-east of the Long barrow at West Kennet, and is of much the same character as to shape and dimensions, but differs in construction. I was induced to visit this in consequence of having been informed by the occupier of the surrounding land that he had caused a hole to be dug at the east end for the purpose of obtaining flint; but that he soon found that it was made up of round and generally flat sarsen stones, which came tumbling so about the men that they gave up the work. It has unfortunately been planted over, as have many of the larger barrows on Hacpen Hill; I think it in bad taste.”

Rev A C Smith quotes Dean Mereweather from ‘Proc Arch Inst. Salisbury volume’, in his 1884 ‘Guide to the British and Roman Antiquities of the North Wiltshire Downs’.

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