LOST SUSSEX! Wolstonbury, Hollingbury, Sarsens etc | Forum

danielspaniel May 9, 2005 13:26:31

Hello TMA'ers everywhere,

Great to see some more Sussex postings (Hi Paravellean – very interesting post on sarsens at Hollingbury. Do you put the Hollingbury website together? BTW, you have accidentally posted North Hill in Hollingbury;-))

I am starting this topic to see if anyone has any thoughts/ opinions on Wolstonbury? Anyone else reckon it is a henge?

Also, I know all the arguments for areas lacking megaliths due to no building material, but there are loads of sarsens in Sussex (some suspiciously megalithic looking) at sites like:

Stanmer (Stoney Marsh): Round the church and at Grannys Belt/ Flint Heap
Falmer: Round the pond
Standean
Ditchling: By the church and pond
The Old Steine, Brighton (look in the fountain!)

Do you reckon they have just been dumped in one place by farmers clearing land, or are they megalithic remains?

One more thing, don't other TMA'ers think it would be good to have a Sussex (or even East and West Sussex) grouping in the rest of southern England section? It's all just rattling around in the main section and it is hard to know what is where.
I have mailed the TMA eds about it, and I am sure they will respond…...if you mail them as well, they are even more likely to! Come on eds, I think we deserve it – we might even have a henge in the county after all!!

StoneLifter May 9, 2005 14:14:12

Replying to danielspaniel

My thoughts on Wolstonbury would be that it possibly has stone in the name. The Wol part might be wall or it might be something else - like wolf or ...

mooncat May 9, 2005 16:03:41

Replying to danielspaniel

Hey daniel spaniel, I dont know the wolstonbury site (next visit I think), but it looks a great place, I'm intrigued by your henge theories atop an Iron-age site; Is this common in British iron-age sites? The photographs on the iste display mostly the atypical rampart ditches, hard to tell... but I feel a trip is coming on soon...

Cheers... Mooncat. x

olly May 9, 2005 23:52:28

Replying to danielspaniel

beside the ditchling road on the right heading away from hollingbury is a dew pond and submerged stones TQ 323111 from which you can see firle and caburn.

Theres a stone beside the road, which has a small oval carving on it apparently on the old parish boundary. look at it and think old Boat................................
TQ 323109. if you can findit do so.

i think the best route is out the back of stanmer village but i usually walk up to the old boat corner carpark sans vehicle from hollingbury. and climb fences to get there. Theres also a romano british 'shrine' thats produced an ox skeleton and jewelry and saxon a burial ground just over the hill called rocky clump and theres a big rock there too. you can see whitehawk and hollingbury apparently alot closer together than they realy are.