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England
Ogbourne St Andrew BarrowRound Barrow(s)
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| Visited 27.3.10. Despite the hail stones I braved the elements and made the short walk up the path to the church - the barrow is covered with trees to the left. I climbed to the top and it looked like the site may have been dug into at some point in the past as it had a large depression in it. Access to the church is via keys - details given on church door. I forgot to check out the disputed standing stone - ah well, it gives me an excuse to visit again on my to Avebury! |
Posted by CARL 29th March 2010ce Edited 29th March 2010ce |
| Well this is really very curious. The mound is much bigger than I expected. My imaginative instinct is to compare it with the huge Wiltshire mounds near water ie Silbury etc. The water's even mentioned in the name of the place. But perhaps I should restrain myself - it's not that big. But it is big, and it is in a direct line with the church. I didn't see any 'venomous vipers' though I can believe they might frequent it. I did spot two (plastic) swords on the mound's summit, so the local children can't be that scared of them. |
Posted by Rhiannon31st August 2007ce Edited 31st August 2007ce |
| This is difficult to photograph. If you are too far back it is just trees.If you are too near it is too dark. On the top is a depression, possibly the excavation site. |
Posted by hamish20th July 2006ce Edited 20th July 2006ce |
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Brooding. The weather was wet. Raining and misty all at the same time. We parked outside the church, and like a div, I still hadn't spotted the barrow. When I did spot it, looming large next to the church, covered in trees, it was like , Wow! It's big, and the immediate impression I got was of darkness, as if it resented the church being there. Maybe that's why the children mentioned in Rhiannon's Folklore entry avoided the place? This post appears as part of the weblog entry Old and New Friends in Wiltshire
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Posted by ocifant30th December 2003ce Edited 30th December 2003ce |
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The round barrow in Ogbourne St Andrew churchyard was said to be avoided by children (in 1938*) as there was "a well-authenticated legend that it is the abode of venomous vipers". Perhaps it had a resident snake population - or could the idea possibly relate to serpents and dragons being symbolic to Christians of the devil? (*from the North Wilts Herald of Aug 19, 1938, and mentioned in vol 50 of the Wilts Arch journal.) Some might also take significance from the statement that the church (or the barrow itself?) is said to be one of the 'nodes' on the Michael/Mary ley line (the undulating ley line being likened to a serpent y'know) - see Miller and Broadhurst's account of following it across the country, 'The Sun and the Serpent'. The lines.. ..converged again in the churchyard at Ogbourne St Andrew.. There, a prehistoric mound was, along with the church, located within a circular raised bank. In the middle of the mound was [a] node. Trees swayed and tall wildflowers whispered gently in the breeze in another of those secret magical places that understate their true significance. Mary ran directly along the axis of the church into the mound and disappeared off across the Marlborough Downs.. Near the church is Poughcombe Farm - which presumably (this is purely my own speculation I hasten to add) derives from 'Puck Combe' - more links with supernatural weirdness.. |
Posted by Rhiannon 16th April 2003ce Edited 31st August 2007ce |
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Whilst footling about in the library I found a note on the 1999 excavation of the churchyard mound in the Wiltshire Arch. + Nat. Hist. Mag v94. It said that the barrow and the church are both aligned and positioned on a further 'substantial but low' east-west earthwork which extends beyond the churchyard. The article didn't speculate on the age or purpose of this earthwork. I also looked up the original excavation, carried out by Cunnington in the 1880s (same magazine, vol 22). He was rather hoping that the barrow was going to contain a wealth of treasure, like the 'viking' (anglo saxon) finds dug up at Taplow only a couple of years previously - that was a barrow in a churchyard too, so you can see why he got his hopes up. The article reveals that the barrow was used time and again for burials over the centuries. He describes the barrow being in the unconsecrated NE corner of the churchyard (actually belonging to King's College Cambridge, weirdly). It was 11ft high and 'much mutilated'. Digging in he found 20+ skeletons about 3ft down, with their heads to the west. They were 'evidently not Ancient British' - I suppose they would be Christian, all ready to sit up and face Jerusalem come judgement day? Cunnington suggested they were medieval. Near the centre at 5ft depth was a male skeleton in a fir coffin; this he suggested a Saxon date for. At 7ft he found the burnt bones of an adult wrapped in a cloth, and placed on a plank of wood with an (unburnt) black flint knife. A small clay vessel was about a yard away. The floor of the barrow was still 4 more feet down - on this he found wood ashes scattered around, with traces of cremations and perhaps a cremation pit. I suppose both these areas of finds are from the Bronze Age. A finely made leaf arrow-head of dark flint was found just below the turf on the surface of the barrow. He also mentions that 'several interesting flint implements and rubbers of sarsen stone were turned up in the course of the excavations'.It may help those looking for information to know that the village has been called 'Ogbourn St Andrew' and 'Okebourn St Andrew' and also 'Little Okebourn', 'Ogbourne St Andrews', etc. Just to confuse matters. |
Posted by Rhiannon 6th January 2004ce Edited 31st August 2007ce |
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Ogbourne St Andrew Church (Standing Stones) — Fieldnotes |
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Visited 12.6.10.. After missing these stones on my last visit to the church (it was raining!) It was time for a re-visit. As you walk up the path to the church the stones are hiden in the hedge to your right. They are in a line and do look like head stones except the two largest which a squarish blocks covered in ivy. Easy to miss unless you are specifically looking for them. There are many large stones embedded in the foundations of the church itself. Most easily seen around the back of the church. I like visiting old country churches. They are very peaceful and interesting places to visit - this is no exception. |
Posted by CARL 14th June 2010ce |
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I noticed the large sarsens under the church - I had forgotten they were here, but they're big enough to draw the eye. I had to feel they were useful foundations (the church is a real mismatch of materials and styles - interesting but locked). But at the end of the day, where did they come from? If they were from a circle, incorporating them was making a statement one way or the other. Maybe they weren't and were just lying around - it's not so far to the greywethers. But it's all very interesting. I assumed from afar that the ones in the boundary (mentioned below) were gravestones and did not look at them properly. |
Posted by Rhiannon 31st August 2007ce |
| The church at Ogbourne St Andrew has large sarsens in the boundary hedge, one large one and a row of smaller ones. These are reminicent of the Churchill Village stones. The Church itself is built on a foundation of large sarsen stones. I would like to think that there was once a stone circle here. The church is positioned on a raised circular platform. After reading Rhiannon's posts, I think this is possible. |
Posted by hamish 20th July 2006ce |
Ogbourne St Andrew Church (Standing Stones) — Images (click to view fullsize) |
     
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Posted by hamish 20th July 2006ce |
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