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Tregeseal

Wretched longhorn cattle

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tjj T
tjj Jun 17, 2011 07:36:50
Replying to moss

moss wrote:
The main thrust of the argument is of course the fencing of the moors which is seen as very unfriendly, you would know more about that ;), whether as TJJ says that fencing round the circles would help I don't know - lots of grumbling from photographers and people who want to get into the circle....
Just to clarify, in my post I mentioned Boscawen-un - as an example, not of fencing in the barbed wire sense, but of an wonderful stone circle which is protected by a circular enclosure of gorse and blackthorn (beautifully in bloom when I visited a couple of Aprils ago). There are a lot of blackthorn hedges in that area which are quite effective as fencing - as anyone who has tried to scrabble through them will confirm.

S StoneGloves
StoneGloves Jun 17, 2011 09:22:07
Replying to tjj

It's curious how many crotal bells are turned up by metal-detectorists and the conclusion must be that many domestic animals, in the past, must have worn them. Which means they must have been very closely shepherded. Probably by a child, in the days before widespread schooling. The largest threat to monuments is people, first and last, and I concur that sheep are the worst by puddling round stones, using them as rubbing posts, which are then undermined and slip or topple.

O ocifant
ocifant Jun 17, 2011 10:08:47
Replying to tjj

tjj wrote:
Just to clarify, in my post I mentioned Boscawen-un - as an example, not of fencing in the barbed wire sense, but of an wonderful stone circle which is protected by a circular enclosure of gorse and blackthorn (beautifully in bloom when I visited a couple of Aprils ago).
You win some, you lose some. Agreed, Boscawen-un is wonderfully protected, private and hidden, but at the same time it's almost impossible to get a sense of the circle's place in the landscape, as all you can see from the circle is bloody gorse! :-)

Compare and contrast with Tregeseal which has a beautiful view across to Carn Kenidjack, or Fernacre on Bodmin with the views up to Rough Tor and around.

T thesweetcheat
thesweetcheat Jun 26, 2011 14:01:41
Replying to tjj

tjj wrote:
Just to clarify, in my post I mentioned Boscawen-un - as an example, not of fencing in the barbed wire sense, but of an wonderful stone circle which is protected by a circular enclosure of gorse and blackthorn (beautifully in bloom when I visited a couple of Aprils ago). There are a lot of blackthorn hedges in that area which are quite effective as fencing - as anyone who has tried to scrabble through them will confirm.
Boscawen-Un is in an area of low lying farmland, most enclosed by hedges and drystone wall-based Cornish hedges. The enclosure of that circle is in keeping with the surrounding landscape (at least as it is now anyway). It has a nice intimate feel but is completely unlike the two moorland circles. Tregeseal and Nine Maidens (potentially threatened by enclosure and grazing as well once Carn Galva/Lanyon Croft schemes are introduced) are on open moorland. There are no hedges or fences around them and the open spaces are integral to their appeal, as is their relative distance from roads and houses. They are my two favourite sites anywhere because of their open, lonely feel.

I also went back to Merry Maidens on Friday and the field was being mown by two tractors, which was quite a weird sight around the stones. For me, the circle lacks atmosphere, it's too sanitised and too close to the road. I would hate to think of the Tregeseal and Nine Maidens circles eventually becoming enclosed farmland.