M

Mr Evasion

Miscellaneous

Arminghall Henge
Henge

The henge was supposedly aligned on nearby Chapel Hill (much more detail in this excellent study: uea.ac.uk/~jwmp/CAA2003.pdf ). This hill, now obliterated by the Norwich to London railway line, was once surmounted by the parish church of the deserted medieval village of Markshall. The nearby village of Caistor also had its church away from the village, in this case in a corner of the ruined town of Venta Icenorum (perhaps on the site of one of the town’s temples?). Incidentally, both of these churches were dedicated to St Edmund.
The naming of White Horse Lane adjacent to the site is intriguing. Now, I may have been staring at this for too long or spent a little too long in the sun, but I think there could be a hint of the outline of a horse figure in this photo: heritage.norfolk.gov.uk/map-record?UID=MNF6100&BBOX=623931,305974,624012,306055&CRS=EPSG:27700&count=1&ck_MON1=true&ck_MON=false
Just outside of the northern curve of the henge, I’m seeing a head due north of the western electricity pylon, and two hind legs just to the left of the eastern set of cables. Just me?!

Arminghall Henge

The site can be easily missed- I first visited the field about a decade ago, unaware of the henge, and failed to spot it (although in my defence I was downhill from it, near the river). Much easier to find second time around, entering over a stile from White Horse Lane, the local electricity board has helpfully marked the spot by placing a pylon either side (they also stuck the adjoining substation over a related round barrow). On a hot, parched summers day like the one of my visit, the earthworks are quite clear, and the vegetation still conforms to the henge contours. Lots of flints lying about, and the ground is turned over by moles- a few finds have been spotted fairly recently. I’m sure someone with a better eye for flint tools than myself could spend a productive half hour here.