Old Trees

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Littlestone L
Littlestone Jun 28, 2007 15:18:56
Replying to moss

This is the Alton Priors Yews 1700 years old... http://farm1.static.flickr.com/150/387889628_d9e6976080_o.jpg
Interestingly, as Nigel has pointed out, the yew in the churchyard at Alton Barnes is younger, though the church is older (Saxon) than the church at Alton Priors. That seems to indicate (along with the stones under the Alton Priors church floor and the 1700 year-old yew) that Alton Priors is the older of the two sites.

Think we may have had this discussion in the Circles under Churches thread but the above might indicate the presence of a 'Celtic' people living and worshiping at their own sacred site at Alton Priors (there's a spring and stream in the same field as the church, and the Ridgeway is very close by), while right next-door at Alton Barnes there were Anglo-Saxons worshiping at their own sacred site - both sites eventually becoming Christianized.

Anyone who hasn't been to Alton Barnes/Priors might be surprised to see how close the two churches are - literally a five minute walk along an interesting stone path that links both churches together.

M moss
moss Jun 28, 2007 16:23:24
Replying to Littlestone

Littlestone wrote:
[
Think we may have had this discussion in the Circles under Churches thread but the above might indicate the presence of a 'Celtic' people living and worshiping at their own sacred site at Alton Priors (there's a spring and stream in the same field as the church, and the Ridgeway is very close by), while right next-door at Alton Barnes there were Anglo-Saxons worshiping at their own sacred site - both sites eventually becoming Christianized.

.

Theres a map in Archaeology SW (CBA), which came today - if you take Bath as the centre of a triangle of three territories - Hwicce/Britons/West Saxons, the Fosse Way being the boundary between the Hwicce/Britons and the East Wansdyke from Bath to Pewsey Vale being the boundary for the West Saxons/Britons (5th-7th century). Which fits in rather well with what you have just said...
The two Altons seems a rather special place, with the stream running through, and the longbarrow on the ridge in the distance. The early saxons would have acknowledged the sacred nature of such a place.

Forgot to say, they also found the remains of an old yew tree by the Chalice Well in Glastonbury. It would have been about 12 foot down from the present level, and was discovered I think with roman bits and pieces....