Campaigners Gather in Fight to Save Silbury Hill
From the Wiltshire GAzette and Herald, 31 May 04
Campaigners gathered at Silbury Hill, at Avebury, on Saturday, four years after the summit collapsed, to air their concerns over its future.
Heritage Action, a group dedicated to the care of threatened and neglected prehistoric sites, believe urgent action is needed to prevent further damage.
The group wants English Heritage, which manages the site, to take heed of its rallying cry fix the hill.
Avebury resident and campaigner Pete Glastonbury said: "Local people are now aware of the situation and many archaeologists are very concerned.
"The word is rapidly getting out to the wider public that nothing has been done and they're disgusted with English Heritage's inaction."
Silbury Hill is the world's largest man-made prehistoric mound.
It was built by our Neolithic ancestors 4,500 years ago and represents a work-effort that far outstrips Stonehenge or Avebury.
It is Britain's equivalent of the Egyptian pyramids and pre-dates many of them.
On May 29, 2000 it suffered the first of a series of collapses of old excavation tunnels and a huge hole appeared at the top.
In 1974 it was fenced off in order to protect it from the erosion caused by thousands climbing it.
Earlier this month the site's owner, Lord Avebury, told a public inquiry into the wording of the Countryside And Rights of Way Act draft legislation he was stunned the Countryside Agency wanted to label the hill as unimproved chalk grassland.
The move could lead to ramblers having free access to the hill, which opponents fear may cause damage.
From: http://www.thisiswiltshire.co.uk/wiltshire/marlborough/news/MARLB_NEWS_LOCAL2.html
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Maidens' makeover near completion
27 May 2004 , from 'This is Cornwall'
Work to restore and repair one of West Penwith's well-known prehistoric stone circles has neared completion, in a joint project between the county council's Environment and Heritage Service, Defra and the Nine Maidens Commoners.
The Nine Maidens Stone Circle, on the northern fringe of Madron between Ding Dong and craggy Carn Galver, has undergone extensive works including scrub clearance, drainage improvements and footpath repair. As a final enhancement, the three long-fallen stones will be re-erected after a preliminary excavation to locate their original sockets.
When first recorded in the mid 18th century, there were 19 stones surviving of an original ring of 22.
Now, there are only 11 stones and of the surviving stones, six stand upright, two are leaning heavily and three have completely fallen.
Other prehistoric monuments surviving close to the stone circle include the stump of a standing stone and several Bronze Age barrows, as well as the famous Men an Tol.
Together they indicate that this area was an important focus in prehistoric times.
The erosion of the monument and surrounding area has been caused by visitors and trail bike users.
Paths leading into the circle had become eroded and muddy while thick gorse had grown over parts of the circle.
Ann Preston-Jones, an archaeologist from the county council's Historic Environment Service, said: "This is a really exciting project. The Nine Maidens is a fine example of one of Cornwall's famous stone circles, but at the moment it seems neglected and sad.
"The work will greatly improve the condition and accessibility of the site. Clearing away the gorse will make the site more visible, but restoring the fallen stones will make it look even more impressive."
Richard Glasson, Defra's project officer for the West Penwith Environmentally Sensitive Area (ESA) said: "We are pleased that the commoners have undertaken this work jointly funded by English Heritage and ourselves through an ESA conservation plan to enhance an important site for the future enjoyment of the public."
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Time to get digging for Archaeology Week
A series of events celebrating the rich and varied archaeology of Strathearn and beyond is set to take place from May 29 until June 6.
Perthshire Archaeology Week has been organised by a consortium of local and national organisations, and receives funding from Perth and Kinross Heritage Trust and the Perthshire Tourist Board.
A series of illustrated talks, guided walks and other events will take place alongside two excavations, for which volunteers are still required.
The first dig will be at Innerpeffray Library, near Crieff, and will be carried out by Roman expert David Woolliscroft as he attempts to find the route of the Gask Ridge Roman road as it crossed the River Earn near Strageath Roman fort.
The second dig, organised by Perth and Kinross Heritage Trust and SUAT Ltd of Perth, will take place at the National Trust for Scotland's Old Schoolhouse Cottown, near St Madoes.
For further information visit www.perthshire.co.uk/archaeologyweek or pick up at leaflet at any tourist information centre or library throughout Perthshire.
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Golden find is 4,000 years old
Hmmm, I wonder how much more has been found and not reported?
A day's metal detecting has unearthed an unexpected treasure - a 4,000-year-old piece of gold.
The ornamental piece of gold is only the second piece to ever be found in the UK and the first to be discovered in Dorset.
It was found by Clive Gibbs and his metal detector in a ploughed field in Fontmell Magna in November 2002.
The precious metal has a gold content of 87 per cent and although it can't be identified with total certainty, may have come from Ireland or France.
Claire Pinder, senior archaeologist at Dorset County Council, said: "One side of the strip is decorated with thin lines, the other side is quite plain.
"It's meant to be decorative, maybe it would have been set into something like a wooden object or wrapped around clothing.
"It could also have been part of an earring or twisted into someone's hair, we just don't know.
"It probably belonged to someone wealthy or of high status. It looks flimsy but is very heavy because of its high gold content."
The only other similar piece to be found in Britain was discovered in Oxford and sent to the British Museum in 1982.
The gold is the most significant find in Dorset recently but treasure seekers have enjoyed a run of success.
John Hinchcliffe, of Tarrant Hinton, was metal detecting on farm land at Charlton Marshall last December when he discovered a medieval silver finger ring, engraved with flowers and bearing a merchant's mark.
And Julian Adams unearthed six Roman coins on land at Melcombe Horsey last October.
All three items were officially declared "treasure" by coroner Michael Johnston at an inquest this week and are awaiting valuation.
Published: May 21
From:
http://www.thisisdorset.net/dorset/north_dorset/news/NORTH_DORSET_NEWS_NEWS0.html
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Ancient monument may be reclassified
by Maev Kennedy of The Guardian, Monday 17 May 2004
An attempt will be made today to have a hill reclassified as a building to protect one of the most enigmatic prehistoric structures in Europe.
Ramblers may gain a theoretical entitlement to walk up the sides of Silbury Hill in Wiltshire if the largest manmade mound in Europe is classified as "open countryside" under the countryside and rights of way bill.
The highest profile objectors to the draft maps so far are celebrities including Madonna, anxious to protect their privacy.
The guardians of the 4,700-year-old hill have been trying to persuade people to keep off Silbury since 1974, when it was closed to the public, without destroying its appearance with intrusive fencing. The monument came close to destruction three years ago when torrential winter rain seeped into shafts left by earlier excavation, which collapsed. Although English Heritage has carried out repairs, the whole structure is vulnerable. Continues here...
And the same story here from 'This is Bristol' 17 May 2004
A bizarre row erupted last night over attempts to open up access to Europe's biggest ancient monument under controversial right-to-roam laws. Locals say the Countryside Agency is "totally mad" for marking Silbury Hill as "unimproved chalk grassland" - because it was built entirely by prehistoric man. Continues here... > And the same story here from BBCi, 17 May 2004
A peer has compared an ancient monument to the pyramids in a row over the government's right to roam laws. Lord Avebury says he is "stunned" the Countryside Agency's wants to label Silbury Hill in Wiltshire as "unimproved chalk grassland".
Whole article here
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Underwater Islands Add to the Mystery of Orkney
By Stephen Stewart, May 10 2004
Archaeologists have re-discovered a lost chapter in Orkney's history which will develop the understanding of mysterious ancient monuments found across Scotland.
Underwater researchers are examining small, artificial islands in Orkney's inland waters, which have lain undiscovered for generations.
Crannogs were fortified places of refuge which are found throughout Scotland in lochs and other waters, but are a class of ancient monument not usually associated with Orkney. Bobby Forbes, an underwater archaeologist, is leading the project in a shallow loch which lies between Stromness and the Loch of Harray, in the vicinity of prehistoric remains at the Ring of Brodgar, Maes Howe and the Stones of Stenness.
He said: "We were doing some work in the Stenness Loch area and found two small islands with causeways, which were flooded by the sea. People have just not known about these man-made islands. The sites are not recorded in Orkney's sites and monuments record.
"We are eager to find out how these sites fit in with the rest of Orkney's archaeology. When they were created, agricultural land would have been at a premium.
"As people tried to avoid inhabiting agricultural land, they would have moved on to the loch and these very easily defended positions."
Some crannogs elsewhere in Scotland and Ireland were large enough to house whole communities, and others were important royal or monastic centres.
More here...
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Bronze Age Stash Found in Surrey
A treasure hoard dating back to the late Bronze Age has been unearthed in Mickleham.
The ancient stash, which includes two axe heads and the end of a sword scabbard, was discovered at Norbury Park on December 9 2003, but only came to light at an inquest last week.
The find, which was made by metal detectionist, Martin Hay, from Horley, was uncovered on land belonging to Surrey County Council.
At the inquest opened by Surrey coroner Michael Burgess in Woking last Thursday, the court heard how the treasures were submitted to Surrey finds liaison officer, David Williams, who took them to the British Museum.
Mr Burgess explained: "This was a small hoard of three complete bronze objects."
He went on to determine that the prehistoric artefacts of "agricultural origin" were found approximately 400 metres from the west bank of the River Mole.
More...
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Water Main Dig Uncovers Bronze Age Settlement
From 'ThisisSlough.com'
A 3,000-year-old hill-top settlement has been discovered during water mains digging.
Pottery and flint have been found alongside burnt bones and storage pits at a site near Taplow. The remains are thought to date back to 850 BC, and are from the late Bronze Age or early Iron Age.
A team of archaeologists are now trying to establish whether the settlement was permanent or temporary. More...
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Common heritage to get one definition
by Maev Kennedy, arts and heritage correspondent, The Guardian, Thursday April 8, 2004
Radical rethink beckons as pilot project looks to impose single register on old and new buildings, public and private sites
An attempt was launched yesterday to devise a single sensible list which can protect a redundant 19th-century steelworks in Sheffield, the imposing Victorian tombs and leaning marble crosses of Arnos Vale cemetery in Bristol, medieval water meadows in Hampshire, London Underground stations on the Piccadilly Line, ancient flint axe works in Cumbria - and the 32-storey Centre Point tower in London.
"We don't need to test it on simple cases, we need to test it on the most complex cases we can find," English Heritage chief executive Simon Thurley said.
The 15 pilot projects, for the most radical reform since scheduled ancient monument and listed building protection was introduced over a century ago, include sites in private, public and mixed ownership.
The pilot projects involve reaching management agreements on what makes the sites special and valuable, and how those features should be preserved and enhanced.
The current listing system is frequently adversarial, pitting owners against the heritage quango, and operates mainly as crisis management. Buildings or sites are listed because of their historic importance or interest, but there is generally no further engagement with owners unless drastic alteration is proposed or - for example Greenside, an important Modern Movement house demolished last winter without permission - actually carried out.
One pilot site is the Holkham estate in Norfolk, which includes listed gardens and parkland, and working farms around the Grade I-listed Holkham Hall, and is owned by an English Heritage commissioner, Lord Leicester - Mr Thurley wryly predicted if the system does not work well, they will certainly hear about it.
The government has already said it wants a single register to replace the current plethora of schemes covering everything from Stonehenge to shipwrecks, Capability Brown landscapes to modest Georgian terraced houses.
The head of listing at English Heritage, Peter Beacham, said a listing system designed to protect a 200-year-old thatched cottage did not work well for 20th-century buildings, which are often the most commercially sensitive.
The 1960s Centre Point, designed by Richard Seifert and now Grade II listed, was once a radical cause celebre, when its owner, Harry Hyams, demanded huge rents, did not get them, and then left it empty for almost 20 years. The management plan would allow routine changes to the office interiors, but maintain the uniform look from the exterior, and special consent would be needed for major alterations.
Another tricky case is the University of East Anglia in Norwich, designed by Denis Lasdun, architect of the National Theatre. Although the buildings, many now Grade II*-listed, set in beautifully landscaped grounds, were much admired externally, students have always complained that they froze in winter and baked in summer. The university now argues that it needs to develop the campus to maintain its international competitiveness.
In striking contrast, Langdale neolithic landscapes in Cumbria are mainly open parkland run by the National Trust, where the chief threat is thousands of fell walkers. The site includes such extensive remains of worked flint that dozens of sites - none with any specific designation, or any defence against passing anorak pockets - are now seen as Neolithic flint axe "factories".
The pilot sites are: Arnos Vale cemetery, Bristol; Centre Point, London; Cornish road and rail bridges; Darnall works, Sheffield; Foulness island, MoD Shoeburyness, Essex; the Godolphin estate, Cornwall; Holkham estate, Norfolk; Kenilworth Castle, Abbey and Mere, Warwickshire; Langdale neolithic landscapes, Cumbria; Piccadilly line, London Underground; RAF Scampton, Lincolnshire; University of East Anglia, Norwich; water meadows, Eastleigh, Hampshire; the Weld estate, Dorset; York city walls.
More on this from a Cumbrian perspective on BBCi here
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Axe on the beach from 8,500 years ago
Dog-walker Jamie Stevenson took a stroll along the beach – and stumbled across an axe head dating back to the stone age.
Mr Stevenson, a Radio Solent newsreader, said: 'My dog Woody likes chasing stones when I skim them on the water, and so I just happened to pick it up.
'It felt different and looked different. It moulded nicely into my hands. When I looked at it more closely I saw that the edges were cut to be sharp.'
Mr Stevenson took the stone he found on Prinsted Beach to Havant Museum.
It was forwarded to Kay Ainsworth, the keeper of archaeology at Hampshire Museums Service.
She said: 'This is a very nice example of a flint Mesolithic era axe. The general shape suggests that it was used as an adze – a stone-age carpentry tool.'
Mr Stevenson said: 'The museum dated it to around 8,500BC.
The axe head was returned to Mr Stevenson, who plans to keep it safe.
From Portsmouth Today
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Cambridgeshire: Site reveals 6,000-year-old relics
Published on 27 March 2004
RELICS dating back 6,000 years to the Neolithic age are being uncovered by archaeologists working on the site of the Fordham bypass.
A team from Cambridgeshire County Council's archaeology field unit are carrying out "digs" on the line of the road before the construction workers move in to build the new route.
Aileen Connor, project manager, said the Neolithic finds, close to the existing A142 road behind the massive Turners transport depot, had not been expected.
Trial digs carried out two years ago had indicated the presence of early Iron Age remains from about 2,500 years ago.
The finds have been found in what was probably a dumping ground for flint off-cuts and other rubbish from the nearby settlement.
Roman coins and other more recent remains have also been discovered.
Ms Connor said that the project, currently the largest archaeological investigation in Cambridgeshire, was expected to continue until the end of May.
An exhibition of the finds is due to be staged in the village this summer when work on the £12.5 million road begins.
From Online Cambridgeshire News
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Stonehenge Tunnel Could Have Knock-on Effect at Avebury
From the Salisbury Journal and Wiltshire Advertiser, 24 March 2004.
Decisions taken about the Stonehenge tunnel could have a knock-on effect at Avebury, the inquiry heard last week.
Following on from archaeologists' concerns, expressed to the inquiry last week, that the proposed 2.1km tunnel, costing £200m, would be inadequate, representatives of the Avebury Society believe the existing scheme also overlooks a significant portion of the World Heritage site.
Ewart Holmes, representing the group, which formed in 1994, said: "Our interest in Stonehenge stems from the fact that it is the other half of a World Heritage site, and decisions taken in one half, at Stonehenge, can have a knock-on effect in Avebury.
"We note that the A303 scheme, which is part of the Stonehenge project, was announced in advance of the Stonehenge Management Plan, and fails to acknowledge the overriding primary emphasis of the latter on conservation, and management of the whole site and its archaeology as a cultural landscape.
Mr Holmes said the primary emphasis of the Stonehenge Management Plan included "improving the interpretation and understanding of the whole of the World Heritage site as a cultural landscape to visitors".
He said: "This is going to be difficult to achieve if the present scheme is to go ahead, as much of the site is divided by the width of the dual carriageways."
The society also believes the proposals for the visitor centre should be considered now, along with the road project.
Mr Holmes said: "I feel that, by just sticking with the road, as it were, a lot of what we have learned over the past 50 years about good planning, as accepted throughout the world, has really just been put to one side. continues...
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'Stone me, its a bronze age grinder'
From the Forres Gazette, 18 March 2004
JUST a few months after neolithic round houses were found on the site of a housing development on the outskirts of Forres, a man living on the other side of town has unearthed more evidence of the area's historic past.
Retired farmer Alec Mackenzie (76), who lives at Karora, Mill of Grange, with his wife, Margaret, was trying to remove a large tree root from his garden when he struck a big rock.
Little did he know he had uncovered evidence of a Bronze Age settlement and that nine years later it would be on display in a local museum - along with an Iron Age artefact that he found stuck in his garden wall.
He told the "Gazette" how, on moving into the house about nine years ago, he tried to dislodge a large stone which was preventing him from digging up the root in the garden.
"When I finally managed to get it, I found a large flat stone and a smaller rock buried together, " he said.
The large stone was shaped like a saddle with an indention in the middle, and Mr Mackenzie left it in his garden, using it as an ornamental birdbath, where it has been for the past nine years, alongside the other smaller stone.
"The birds absolutely love it, " he said.
"It's just the right shape for them as it fills with water. I thought it was quite an unusual shape and have been meaning to bring it into the museum for ages."
When he finally did bring the object into the Falconer Museum in Forres, museums officer Anne Bennet said she was extremely excited about what she saw.
"I thought straightaway that this was a saddle quern because it was so easily identifiable, " said Miss Bennet.
"It is in good condition and dated somewhere between 500BC and 4500BC, so it could be more than 5,000 years old.
"I phoned the regional archaeologist to come and have a look at it."
Regional archaeologist Ian Shepherd, who is based in Aberdeen, confirmed that the piece was a saddle quern which would have been used for grinding oats into flour, and dated it from the Bronze Age.
"It is not a unique find, but it is very unusual and an important find, " he said.
This is not the first time that Forres has hit the historical headlines. Last August, architects doing a pre-site survey of a housing development at Grantown Road for Springfield Properties unearthed evidence of round houses dating from about 3000BC.
A further examination of the site uncovered two neolithic round houses, primitive dwellings which housed people and animals, and buildings which the archaeologists thought might be Pictish.
At the time, Mr Shepherd said the area would have to be properly researched and documented before being returned to the developers.
Meanwhile, Mr and Mrs Mackenzie said although they suspected the stone from their garden was "old" they were unaware it would be historically important, but thought it might have been used for grinding flour as the other stone found with it appeared to fit into it.
"I thought the stone I dug up with it was probably used for grinding down the oats on the top of the quern and milling it into flour, but apparently it was just coincidental that the two stones were dug up together, " said Mr Mackenzie.
Mr Mackenzie has now donated the quern to the Falconer Museum, where it will be on display along with another large flat stone which he dug out of his garden wall two weeks ago.
This time Miss Bennet was able to say that the item was an Iron Age piece and had probably been used as the top half of a rotary quern, which would also have been used for grinding oats into flour. She said this was a more common find, often uncovered throughout Scotland.
"It was stuck in an old rough dyke, " said Mr Mackenzie.
"My wife didn't know what it was either but I think you used to put a stick in a hole in this one and spin it to grind the oats."
"It's just amazing, " said Miss Bennet.
"I don't know what's going to turn up next, and I have contacted the regional archaeologist again."
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New Resting Place for Grave
Hot on the heels of this: http://www.themodernantiquarian.com/post/24862
comes this:
http://www.tavistock-today.co.uk/news/newsdetail.cfm?id=74945
Huzzah!
A BRONZE age burial chamber has found a new place of rest after almost two years in limbo.
The 4,000-year-old grave or cist, which weighs well over a tonne, was moved to its new home at the High Moorland Centre in Princetown last week.
The granite slabs that make up the cist were transported by truck from Torquay Museum and lifted into position using a crane.
Its reconstruction is as close to the original as possible, aligned in a south easterly direction and covered by the ancient capstone for protection from Dartmoor?s fiercest weather.
It is the second time the cist has been relocated ? after its discovery on Thornworthy Tor in 1880 it was transported to Torquay Museum and spent the next 120 years embedded in the entrance hall floor.
Having removed the cist during refurbishment two years ago the curators could find no alternative site for it within the museum so offered it to Dartmoor National Park Authority.
They arranged for the grave to be reconstructed in the Jack Wigmore garden at the High Moorland Centre where it is now on permanent public display.
The cist will soon be accompanied by an information point describing its fascinating and eventful history.
Copyright: Tindle Newspapers Ltd 18 March 04
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Talks on Future of Historic Site
Lip service?
A new group has been set up to look at the future of one of Britain's most important archaeological areas. Thornborough Henges near Ripon in North Yorkshire is a concentration of late Neolithic and Bronze Age sites.
But there are fears it could be under threat if an application is made to extend sand and gravel quarrying.
Now the county council has set up a consultation group including local people and representatives of English Heritage and English Nature.
The members will meet about every six weeks to exchange information and views on the future of the henges.
County Councillor Peter Sowray, who chairs the group, said: "The county council recognises the importance of Thornborough Henges both locally and nationally.
"The group has been set up to reflect the county council's role in dealing with the henges.
"Further mineral working would have major implications not only for the henges and surrounding archaeological landscape but also in terms of the impact on local communities at Thornbrough and Nosterfield."
In October 2003, North Yorkshire County Council was criticised by Dr Mark Horton from the University of Bristol for not doing enough to protect the site against damage from quarrying.
Construction company Tarmac currently extracts more than 500,000 tonnes of sand and gravel each year from Nosterfield Quarry.
Tarmac says nothing it is planning would damage the henges.
Story from BBCi, 02/03/04
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/north_yorkshire/3524055.stm
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Ancient Stone Tomb Returns to Dartmoor
Hoorah! A 'good news' story for once!
A 4,000 year old grave discovered in Chagford in 1879 is returning to Dartmoor.
The prehistoric grave will be relocated to the High Moorland Centre in Princetown early next month from Torquay Museum where it has been for 120 years. Torquay Natural History Society has loaned the grave to Dartmoor National Park Authority for an initial period of five years because it no longer has room for it at the museum.
It is one of two graves or cists (from the Germanic word kistvaen, literally meaning stone chest) which were discovered during the excavation of a prehistoric burial mound near Thornworthy Tor, Chagford in 1879. Burial cists date to the earlier part of the second millennium BC and consist of slabs of granite set on edge to form a box-like structure with another slab laid horizontally as a lid. They were usually sunk into the ground and covered with earth or stones, forming a mound and would have contained either a single burial or a cremation.
The first cist discovered at Thornworthy was excavated by Samuel Slade of Torquay, who decided to seek the help of William Pengelly, the Torquay geologist, in excavating the second cist at the site. By the time Pengelly reached the site the second cist had been looted and all that remained were pottery fragments and flint tools.
Robert Standerwick, the landowner, donated the second cist to Torquay Museum which Pengelly had been instrumental in founding in 1845. It was reconstructed in its original form on the museum floor and will be moved and resited by Dartmoor National Park Authority's Conservation Team.
Communications officer for Dartmoor National Park Authority, Mike Nendick, said the cist would be rebuilt and installed in the Jack Wigmore garden, exactly as it was in the museum floor in 1880.
'It consists of five blocks of stone, which weigh a quarter of a tonne each,' he said.
'The garden has been redeveloped to represent some of the natural and cultural aspects of the Dartmoor landscape, which is one of the most important areas in Northern Europe for Bronze Age archaeology. It is the perfect spot to have the cist, which will be an excellent addition to the centre — and it will be seen from the inside as well as the outside.'
Copyright Tindle Newspapers Ltd, 26 February 2004
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Protesters Dig in to Save Landscape from Quarry: 'It'll cost millions to get us out'
by John Vidal, environment editor of The Grauniad
14 February 2004
One of Britain's most historic landscapes is about to become the scene of a passionate encounter between conservationists, local communities and industry as protesters start to flock to a small valley in the Peak District national park.
At stake are the long abandoned Endcliffe and Lees Cross quarries at Stanton Lees in Derbyshire. Overgrown with ash, birch and beech trees on steeply sloping land leading up to the bronze age Nine Sisters stone circle ancient monument on the moor above, they have been worked for many centuries on a small scale to provide local stone. But they are about to be massively expanded to provide 3.2m tonnes of some of the most sought-after sandstone in Britain.
Before work can start, however, a battle of the intensity of the road protests at Twyford Down and Newbury in the 1990s looks inevitable. The 32-acre site has been occupied for four years by protesters who have already built more than 25 tree houses and dug a com plex of deep tunnels and defences in stone cavities. After a high court case last week, which gave the Stancliffe Stone company permission to evict them, they expect hundreds of people to join them. ...continues here...
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Ancient Stone Circle Has Made Us Ill, Say Ghost Detectives
Report filed Feb 11 2004 by Robin Turner, The Western Mail
A pair of psychic investigators looking at the healing properties of an ancient stone circle claim it has made them seriously ill.
Brian Perinton and mother-of-two Claire Williams visited Carn Llechart stone circle in the Swansea Valley three months ago. They planned to investigate the healing properties and positive energy which standing in the centre of circle, said to have been constructed in around 2,000BC, was reputed to give to people.
Mr Perinton said yesterday, "I have never seen anything like it. Claire was bodily thrown from the centre of the circle by some kind of force. I felt it too. It was like being punched in the stomach."
"Since our visit we suffered severe headaches, stomach problems, lethargy and general illness. It was almost as if our energy was completely sapped by whatever was in the centre of those stones."
"We are starting to recover now but we want to find out if anyone else has had similar experiences. We would love to speak to them to find out if the illnesses and general feeling of weakness are the same."
"Then we can start some kind of scientific investigation into what could be causing this."
Mr Perinton, 65, and Ms Williams, 32, run a ghost detective agency in Swansea and have been called to offices, houses and other buildings in which owners or occupants claim to be troubled by spirits or apparitions.
In a recent mission they helped a pub in Neath to rid itself of an angry spirit, said to have been the ghost of a former regular who did not want to leave.
Carn Llechart stone circle, high above Pontardawe, is said to be one of the finest examples of a stone ring cairn or burial chamber in Wales.
The unusual circle is 40ft across and consists of 25 stones leaning slightly outwards giving a crown of thorns effect.
No one is entirely certain why the stone circles were created but they are a Celtic phenomenon. Archaeologists believe they could be giant calendars with stone shadows tracing the alignment of the moon and sun.
It could be the stones are tributes to the dead buried in the circle and some have even speculated they could be used to harness the energy of ley lines, thought to be lines of magnetic energy running across the earth.
Professor Clive Ruggles, of the University of Leicester, says great care is needed in interpreting them.
He said, "Just because a monument is aligned in a certain direction we might be tempted to interpret it as astronomically significant."
"But the Bronze Age people were not astronomers as we know the term today. However, celestial cycles and objects were extremely important to them."
Certain circular tombs in Britain have been found to point towards the rising sun and winter solstices.
Many believe stone circles have magic or healing powers, so much so that English Heritage was forced many years ago to fence off the country's best known stone circle, Stonehenge.
Scientists have carried out experiments at a variety of stone circles finding that the huge rocks tend to generate their own weak magnetic fields. But whether these can combine at certain times of the year as some pagans claim, so as to concentrate energy at a central point, has never been proved.
Mr Perinton said, "We would like anyone who has had a similar experience to contact our agency so we can build up a picture of what is happening."
The agency's number is 01792 417693.
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New Discoveries at Corfe Castle
by Paula Tegerdine of 'This is Purbeck' online
Wednesday 04 February 2004
Quietly hidden among the rolling hills of Purbeck is a unique and important archaeological landscape.
A report just published by English Heritage reveals the extent of earthworks, medieval field patterns and trackways at Corfe Common, near Corfe Castle.
The area has attracted the interest of antiquarians for centuries because of its eight Bronze Age barrows (burial mounds).
English Heritage's latest research has revealed another two barrows on East Common and identified other features showing how the land has been used for farming over the centuries.
An impressive prehistoric or Romano-British field system known as `Celtic fields' were identified on the southern flank of the common. Read on here...
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Habitat: Commonly sighted in fields round Oxfordshire and Wiltshire.
Distribution: Widespread; occasional migrations to overwinter in Africa or other hot climes.
Characteristics: A tall, blonde, opinionated bird with feisty temper when provoked. Prone to spells of gloom during winter months. Usually sporting dark plumage, except for golden head, can often spotted with sketchbook and brushes near megalithic sites.
Feeding habits: Easily tempted with cheese (any variety) or a nice cup of tea. Unfeasibly fond of curry.
Behaviour: Unpredictable, approach cautiously. Responds very favourably to flattery.
Abhors: slugs, invisible sky gods, Tories, the Daily Mail, bigots, eggs, the cold, walking and timewasting.
Adores: a man called Moth, painting, live music, furry creatures, tea administered frequently, hot places, cheese, writing crap poetry, David Attenborough, Ernest Shackleton, Vincent van Gogh and the English language.
Want more?: see her website.
Big old rocks I find appealling
Their secrets they are not revealing
Some are chambers, some are tombs
Hidden in valleys and in combes
Some are said to act like clocks
With shadows cast out from their rocks
I like the way they just survive
When I visit, I feel alive
So I chase my rocks around the maps
Round England, Ireland and France, perhaps
But there ain't nothin' that I liked so much
As to see the Hunebedden, dem is Dutch.
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