Thursday 19 May 2022 12:07 AM Mysterious stone circle is unearthed within Castilly Henge trends now

Thursday 19 May 2022 12:07 AM Mysterious stone circle is unearthed within Castilly Henge trends now
Thursday 19 May 2022 12:07 AM Mysterious stone circle is unearthed within Castilly Henge trends now

Thursday 19 May 2022 12:07 AM Mysterious stone circle is unearthed within Castilly Henge trends now

A mysterious stone circle has been unearthed at the centre of a prehistoric ritual site in Cornwall.

Archaeologists said the discovery at Castilly Henge, near Bodmin, made it only the second henge with a stone circle in the county.

It was uncovered following a series of surveys as part of a project to conserve and better understand the site, which is believed to have been built during the late Neolithic period (3,000 – 2,500 BC).

Defined by an external bank and an internal ditch, Castilly Henge would have formed an amphitheatre-like setting for gatherings and ritual activities. 

Previous researchers have suggested that the site was used as a theatre in the Middle Ages, and then as a battery during the English Civil War.

Discovery: A mysterious stone circle has been unearthed at the centre of a prehistoric ritual site near Bodmin in Cornwall

Discovery: A mysterious stone circle has been unearthed at the centre of a prehistoric ritual site near Bodmin in Cornwall

Archaeologists said the discovery at Castilly Henge, near Bodmin, made it only the second henge with a stone circle in the county

Archaeologists said the discovery at Castilly Henge, near Bodmin, made it only the second henge with a stone circle in the county

It was uncovered following a series of surveys as part of a project to conserve and better understand the site, which is believed to have been built during the late Neolithic period (3,000 – 2,500 BC)

It was uncovered following a series of surveys as part of a project to conserve and better understand the site, which is believed to have been built during the late Neolithic period (3,000 – 2,500 BC)

Ann Preston-Jones, heritage at risk project officer at Historic England, said: 'The research at Castilly Henge has given us a deeper understanding of the complexity of this site and its importance to Cornish history over thousands of years. 

'It will help us make decisions about the way the monument is managed and presented, so that it can be enjoyed by generations to come.'

The opportunity to apply modern survey methods to the intriguing monument arose in 2021 when it was included in a Monument Management Scheme (MMS), a partnership between Historic England and the Cornwall Archaeology Unit (CAU) to conserve and repair monuments on Historic England's Heritage at Risk Register.

Volunteers coordinated by the CAU cleared the site of vegetation which threatened below-ground archaeological deposits. 

This work enabled teams from Historic England to carry out the first detailed topographic and geophysical surveys of Castilly Henge.

The surveys, which will be shared in more detail in a Historic England report released later this year, revealed traces of a long-buried stone circle in the centre of the henge, making this only the second henge with a stone circle in Cornwall.

They also uncovered detailed information about the henge's original form and its modification over time.

Defined by an external bank and an internal ditch, Castilly Henge would have formed an amphitheatre-like setting for gatherings and ritual activities

Defined by an external bank and an internal ditch, Castilly Henge would have formed an amphitheatre-like setting for gatherings and ritual activities

The opportunity to apply modern survey methods to the intriguing monument arose in 2021 when it was included in a Monument Management Scheme

The opportunity to apply modern survey methods to the intriguing monument arose in 2021 when it was included in a Monument Management Scheme

Volunteers coordinated cleared the site of vegetation which threatened below-ground archaeological deposits

Volunteers coordinated cleared the site of vegetation which

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