Latest Fieldnotes

Our final stop was spent in Northumbria at a place called ‘Brigantium’. There is such a wealth of archaeology in the county that is quite difficult to get to, but the people in charge of Brigantium have produced mock ups of some of the famous sites to show people what the county has to offer. One of the sites is though (they boast) quite real. That of a hunters rock shelter that dates well into the Mesolithic. Flints had been found there during excavations and various slabs look as if they have been placed.

We stopped at Aviemore on the way to feed and water ourselves and were pleasantly surprised to see another stone circle signposted from the road. We followed the signs and found it, in the middle of a housing estate. Not really the ideal setting for such an ancient place but I bet the houses next door are worth a bob or two as a result. It reminded me of King Orrys Grave on the Isle of Man. Again the ultimate sacrilege had been allowed by ignorant planners, allowing development next to the monument.

Very near, in fact practically next door to the battlefield (Culloden), is the ancient site of Clava Cairns. Burial chambers thought to date from the 3rd or 4th millennia BC. There are three of them and there all very impressive, cups marks can be found on various rocks and the place is in surprisingly good condition. Again we were blessed with the timing of our visit. We were the only people there, if we’d have had time we would have loved to have stayed a little longer.

Down the road from the hostel at Kershader we had heard about the remains of another broch at Cromor. The broch again was in the middle of the loch and again pretty unaccessible. It looked good though, you couldn’t see it from the road, instead we had to clamber over a hillock to sneak a peek. I again marvelled at the sheer wealth of history on these amazing islands.

There are all sorts on the Western coast of Lewis. Most are ‘blink and you’ll miss it places’ such as the unsignposted Loch an Duna Broch, the remains of which lie on a small island linked to the mainland of the loch by a ever more waterlogged causeway. Theres another one on a loch just a few miles up the road. The loch at shader, itself overlooked by the remains of a chambered cairn known as Steinicleit.

Opposite Steinicleit (which could date from 3000BC) past the loch is the huge monolith of Clach an Truseil. An absolutely huge stone which now, I was reasonably surprised to note had a picnic bench not too far away from it.

There are all sorts on the Western coast of Lewis. Most are ‘blink and you’ll miss it places’ such as the unsignposted Loch an Duna Broch, the remains of which lie on a small island linked to the mainland of the loch by a ever more waterlogged causeway. Theres another one on a loch just a few miles up the road. The loch at shader, itself overlooked by the remains of a chambered cairn known as Steinicleit.

Variously described as a stone circle, cairn circle, kerb cairn and kerb circle, this circle consists of ten stones, although legend has it that it’s impossible to count all of them. A short distance to the south-west is a large prostrate outlier, profusely decorated with cup-marks, cup-and-ring-markings and a dumbell. This stone was found to be connected to the circle by a causeway (3.4m long by 1.0m wide) of stone cobbles.

The south-east stone in the circle also features cup-marks, cup-and-ring-markings and dumbells. There is a gap in the circle at the south-east which suggests there may have been as many as 15 stones originally. At the west-south-west, the three largest stones are arranged close together.

Excavation in 1938 revealed much about the centre of the circle. Evidence of extensive burning by a hazelwood fire was found, and in an upper layer possible Early Iron Age pottery was uncovered. Further down, sited “eccentrically” near the centre of the circle, was a crude cist containing the cremated remains of an adult and a six year old child and fragments of quartz. Quartz was also found scattered around the stones.

The best time of year to visit would probably be autumn or winter, as the area around the circle is left thick with nettles and weeds during the summer months.

Dun Carloway is the most impressive broch in the Western isles and next to Mousa Broch in Shetland probably the most impressive in Britain. It was here that we stopped off first.

I love brochs they’re great, you can fight your way through wind and rain to get to them and when you finally get inside you can fell sheltered and safe. Most brochs originate from the Iron Age and were fortified farmsteads. Brochs could house people and animals inside and keep stores for weeks maybe even months. Dun Carloway dates from the 1st century BC and is situated on top of a hillock overlooking its manor. A wonderful place

Now we all know that Lewis is one of the places to go if your interesting in antiquity and stone circles etc. Lewis plays host to Callanish a wonderful place which evokes mystery and wonder. But Lewis also offers so much more, stone circles, brochs, duns, menhirs, Vikings, blackhouses, scenery and water lots and lots of water.

We wandered first to the impossible to pronounce Cnoc Fillibhear Bheag. The ground was marshy and the rain had started to pour down. Not that we were too bothered; to wander round all the Callanish circles had been another main point to the trip.

A path links Cnoc to another circle a couple of hundred metres away known as Cnoc Ceann a’Gharraidh. A place with an equally long and difficult name and which boasts quite a cool triangular stone which we took the opportunity to shelter behind whilst the wind threatened to blow us into the bog. Callanish could be seen in the distance its stones like needles sticking up from the ground.

I had been there once before again in 1996, but my friend had not. I had been impressed with its size and complexity then and now my feelings remained. What went on here really? Why was it built? All these questions penetrate your head as you weave your way through the stones.

It was 8pm by the time we got to Callanish, a good time it seems as all the crowds had long since left. A couple who were also wandering around told us that they had been there earlier that afternoon and the place was just heaving with a combination of tourists and druids. Druids! Of course! The summer solstice was only two days away. Not that we’d be here for that unfortunately, we had a tight schedule to work to. Maybe next year…

We wandered first to (the impossible to pronounce Cnoc Fillibhear Bheag). The ground was marshy and the rain had started to pour down. Not that we were too bothered; to wander round all the Callanish circles had been another main point to the trip.

A path links Cnoc to another circle a couple of hundred metres away known as Cnoc Ceann a’Gharraidh. A place with an equally long and difficult name and which boasts quite a cool triangular stone which we took the opportunity to shelter behind whilst the wind threatened to blow us into the bog. Callanish could be seen in the distance its stones like needles sticking up from the ground

We wandered first to the impossible to pronounce Cnoc Fillibhear Bheag. The ground was marshy and the rain had started to pour down. Not that we were too bothered; to wander round all the Callanish circles had been another main point to the trip.

A path links Cnoc to another circle a couple of hundred metres away known as Cnoc Ceann a’Gharraidh. A place with an equally long and difficult name and which boasts quite a cool triangular stone which we took the opportunity to shelter behind whilst the wind threatened to blow us into the bog. Callanish could be seen in the distance its stones like needles sticking up from the ground

Harris is a peculiar place, full of extremes. On the west coast are beaches which surely match the finest on earth, yet on the east and in the north, the landscape is barren and rocky. Stanley Kubrick in filming his masterpiece 2001 A Space Odyssey used the rocky terrain of Harris as a double for Mars. Testament indeed to the out worldly nature of the place.

Across one of the beaches on the west side there is a signpost directing the traveller to a place known as ‘The Macleod Stone’. An impressive monolith perched on a hilltop looking out over to Taransay, the island made famous by the BBC’s Survivor programme.

To get there is no chore although the beach does seem to stretch forever and apart from sinking in the soft sand and leaping over the odd channel it’s a pleasant trip. However, this is Harris, a place renowned for its unpredictable weather. As we reached the stone, the wind started to howl and the rain buffeted down. We took our pics and struggled back to the roadside fighting the elements.

On the way to the ferry we passed the standing stones at Eyre. Looking out over the loch they shared a field with a rather large group of inquizitive cows who seemed to take pleasure in following us around. We walked briskly up to the stones, lingered for a minute until the cows had lost interest and then walked briskly back.

Eventually we ended up in Glencoe and were blessed in the fact that the set for the latest Harry Potter has been built up on the hillside. You can see Hagrids House, another construction that looks like it could be a passageway of somekind and, surprise surprise, a makeshift set of standing stones.

After trying to sneak onto said set for a better look our plan was scuppered by one of the many security guards manning the site. Well, at least the view wasn’t too bad from the road. The cast and crew by the way had taken the weekend off from filming, lucky them.

Ah well! Onto the famous Signal Rock! The Signal rock has a rather macabre history as it was from here that the signal was sent in 1692 to start the massacre of Glencoe when members of the Clan Campbell slaughtered their hosts the MacDonalds whilst they slept in their beds.

The rock is to be found by following a path away from Glencoe town into a wooded glade. About a mile from the Harry Potter set is the rock and atop the rock midgies reign supreme. It must be said any trip to this part of Scotland must come complete with lots of insect repellent.

As we rushed back along the path to the car, my eye caught a funny shaped rock just off the side of the path partly obscured by undergrowth and merging in quite well with the other rocks in the area. It looked like a standing stone although there is nothing to indicate this on the OS map. A puzzle indeed but it didn’t look like it should have been there so I took a couple of pics and have submitted accordingly, take a look and see what you think.

Eigg is the second largest of the small isles after Rum. The other small isles are Canna and Muck and none can be easily accessed by car ferry. On Eigg an island made famous by the fact the locals were able to buy back the land from there stay away landlord, this is a problem.

The island is the most populous of all the islands with a princely population of 78. There is a four mile road stretching from the port at Galmisdale to the small village of Cleadale on the north of the island. A car ferry would encourage more visitors to the island and encourage more people to come and live there. It would also enable someone to get all the disused rotten junk away from the island. Eigg is a stunningly beautiful place but it really is threatening to become disfigured by the sheer amount of fly tipping which seems to be going on.

The standing stone of Eigg is not to be confused with the monolith at the harbour commemorating the islands takeover by residents. This menhir stands proud looking over the new ferry terminal construction but the stone marked on the OS maps was about two miles further inland and pretty much in the centre of the island.

Walking there was pleasant and not strenuous, this stone was certainly easier to find than the one supposedly on the island of Rum, it was just off the side of the road, its always nice when they are so conveniently sited don’t you think?

After posing for the obligatory photographs we set off back along the road in the hope that it wouldn’t be too long before we reached the farm in which we were staying. After about half a mile we came upon another stone which didn’t look like it should have been there at all. This was smaller than the previous stone and was tilted at an angle. I again took some photos and named it the Eigg lesser stone ;-)

Class 1 Pictish stone, various symbols, plus large cup marks on lower rear of stone.

I am getting so good at driving straight past these things!

To find this place, we drove South on the A391, and joined the B3274 at Stenalees, heading towards St Austell. The turning is on the right, roughly two miles down the B3274. If you go under the impressive viaduct, you’ve gone too far! The turning seemed easier to approach from the other direction anyway...

The location of this place is very peaceful. Hard to believe the proximity of the road above. The well-house itself is attached to the wall that the road runs along. It was built in the late fifteenth century and restored by Sir Charles Graves Sawle in 1922.

It was all very green and lush when we visited in May 2003 – mosses covering everything, the rhodedendrons in full bloom... The waterfall adds to the ambience, with the most amazing tree, completely arched over so it virtually dips into the stream. And that odd little stone seat! It’s all lovely!

A nice place to spend an hour or two, I reckon!

Hare cairn or the ‘Law of Keithock’ was a large, conical cairn of stones 20’ high and 45’ in diameter at base surmounted by the 6’ standing stone that now marks the site. The cairn was removed in the early to mid 19th century and two cists containing human remains were found about 26 yds SW of the present position of the stone. It is reported that before its destruction in the early 19th century this cairn measured 14m in diameter by 6m in height and was surmounted by a standing stone. Two cists were found about 24m SW of the present position of the standing stone, which has been re-erected on the site of the cairn.

Visited yesterday, but the field was full of young bullocks, so discretion won. Photographed it from the fence!

Kerris Inscribed Stone

Whilst in Penzance for Golowan (who needs Glastonbury?) I had to visit some friends out at Kerris. First time I had been to the house so imagine my surprise when they told me they had a “stone” in their fireplace.
The house has been renovated over the last few years from a very ruinous state. Whilst making the old fireplace safe they discovered letters on a granite upright. Calling in Craig Weatherhill, who then called others they found out they had a 6th century inscribed stone. It is in a form of Latin and spells out something to do with Kerris. I promise to find out more....
Although not inscribed, the stones in the fireplace at the other end of the cottage are huge! If as they have been told there was possibly a circle in the area before Borlase came then perhaps this is what happened to the stones. The biggest one that makes the right hand side wall of the fireplace is approx 4 ft deep by 6 ft high! whilst the lintel is a good 7 ft long.

Oh yes indeedy......

A truly awe-inspiring site. Battered it may be (or Bull Ringed as we say in Derbyshire)... but like wow!

“If you go down to the woods today.......”

An excellent site, I was a touch worried about the trees before arriving....but there was no need.
After using the ditch bottom to walk round the henge I was surprised to see just how well defined the henge actually is........

Visited 15th June 2003: Cerrig Arthur isn’t far from Sylfaen Farm (marked on the Landranger). The tarmac finishes at the farm, but not the road, which becomes a dirt track with a vehicular right of way. This means you can drive on past the farm and park just before the first gateway. From here you need to walk on through the gateway, then approximately north west up the hill to the circle.

The three largest stones at Cerrig Arthur are part of some sort of megalithic construction in the centre of the circle. The remaining stones that make up the circle itself are relatively small. The site is often described as an embanked stone circle because it sits on a little artificial shelf cut out of the hillside. Interestingly Cerrig Arthur is another site where public footpaths converge. Indicating that it’s been a significant landmark for centuries. We were really lucky with the weather. In fact it was extremely hot and sunny (hence the silly hats) and the mountains to the south looked great. It was a beautiful place to find after a long drive.

When we got back to the car we found it only had two functional gears! Luckily these were 3rd and 4th, so I got us into Barmouth for some time on the beach, then limped the poor old car all the way home, thrashing the clutch as I went.

Ok so perhaps it’s gratuitous to write yet another fieldnote for this place, but I LOVE IT SO MUCH. We were up here several hours but the time just raced by. You can spread yourself out in the sun and feel supported by the weight of the huge cliff beneath you, drink in the sunshine, be lulled by the sound of the waves on the distant shore below. The ground is carpeted with gorgeous seaside plants like thrift and sea campion, but also heathy things like heather – it’s a lovely mix. For such a sunny sunday the place should have been heaving with people but there was hardly a soul up here, it was gloriously calm.

This visit perhaps I was more aware of the surrounding landscape – there are so many strangely shaped hills topped with earthworks and I spotted a hill with a perfectly placed barrow. You’re on top of the world – not lording over it, just excellently placed to appreciate it spreading out around you. (By the way, I was less convinced by Julian’s theory about the landscape figure* – the head would be at a rather cricked angle. But maybe..)

Visit – you will not be disappointed. And if you want to freak yourself out a bit afterwards, head for (the imaginatively titled) Seatown, where you can see from the beach just how monstrous the cliff you’ve just been peering over really is. Also you’ll deserve the beer/icecream you can buy there after your exertions.

*he is talking about the long Langdon Hill. To add to the area’s hidden landscape, J. Harte in the Third Stone 29 article ‘Hidden Laughter’ talks of a fairy sighting on the Langdon Hill – Chideock footpath in the 1940s...

Visited on 24th June 2003 on a circular walk from Men-an-Tol. It was sunny and blustery up at Boskednan. Had the place to ourselves for the most part, fell asleep briefly in the centre of the circle while my other half dozed lying on one of the leaning stones. For some reason I had expected the atmosphere here to be darker but it wasn’t at all and we felt very energised after our snooze.

Once you know where it is this menhir is visible from Men-an-Tol, Nine Maidens (Boskednan) and Ding Dong mine, from a distance the stone was very dark in it’s field.

I read in ‘Journey To The Stones’ that there’s a well/spring nearby (in a field somewhere behind the four parish boundary stone that lies by the track to Boskednan, but couldn’t find it).