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| View from the barrow entrance |
Our short Cornish trip revealed some treasures, the Hurler stone circles certainly being one, but further on the Rillaton Barrow situated between the Cheesewring and the stone circles was certainly a barrow not to be missed.
Description aside, this large, untidy, desecrated Bronze Age barrow shown by our good friend and guide Sanctuary, did make my heart miss a beat. Reading up on it, and I find in was restored in 1900, and had some archaeological work done in 1995 to the entrance, this may have detracted a bit, but still.
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| Reedy pond on top of the barrow |
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| Entrance to chamber where the Bronze Age skeleton was found |
Firstly this enormous barrow is pitted with stone robber pits, a reed filled pond lies in its centre and the entrance pit has been raised up so as to stop school children going into the hole and damaging the inside stones and the fluorescent lichen, which gives a ghostly green glow inside the tomb. The rather neat internal stones have ferns growing against them, and our proud warrior with his gold cup and bronze age dagger lies buried between the Cheesewring and the stone circles, also has a marvellous view to the front over the surrounding countryside.
Interesting information of the work done in 1995.
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| Rillaton Gold Cup |
www.cornwall.gov.uk/idoc.ashx?docid=470eb27a-37f3-4d2d
I will blame it on lack of sleep, but I was just thinking "Rillaton" - where have I heard that before? And suddenly the Rillaton gold cup came to me. It's been a long time since I last thought of that. . .
ReplyDeleteSounds like you are having a wonderful time and I am envious of the archaeology . . . And the holiday, come to that! We are about to have our day-out-holiday tomorrow - just over to Hay-on-Wye, but no complaints. We had to go to Brecon for clay paint, so thought we would make a day of it.
What a magical place and that cup is utterly beautiful. I'd like to hold it but I doubt anyone is allowed to do that.
ReplyDeleteHi Jennie, day out holidays are just as good. We saw several prehistoric things, the weather was cold though, but it was an adventure in Cornwall, somewhere I had only been to as a child, beautiful landscape in its own way.
ReplyDeleteHi Em, think the cup has Greek origins, or Greek shape but not too sure, found in the middle of nowhere makes you wonder.. his 'beaker' cup was a real treasure.
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