Tony Garofalo
Mayburgh Neolithic Henge
Mayburgh (“maidens’ fort”) Henge is a large and impressive construction that most probably dates back to the late Neolithic period (3000 to 2000 BC). It is located just south of the Cumbrian town of Penrith (“hill ford”), where it stands on a tongue of land that lies between the River Eamont (“water from the mountain” [?]) and the River Lowther (“foamy river”); close to the point where the two rivers combine. Situated close by are two other Neolithic henge monuments: “King Arthur’s Round Table” and the much smaller and less well known “Little Round Table”. Together the three henges form a group and they are sometimes referred to as the “Penrith Henges”.
Mayburgh is the largest and the best preserved of the Penrith Henges. Its circular embankment is 10 feet high in places and it encloses an inner area of approximately 1.5 acres. It is constructed from boulders that are thought to have been gathered from the nearby rivers. This is unlike the method used to construct most other henges from that period, where the embankments were built by piling up earth and rubble dug out of an associated ditch. It has been estimated that the embankment contains some 20,000 tons of stone and that it would take 1000 men six months to construct it without modern tools and machinery. Situated towards the centre of the henge is a single large standing stone, nearly 10 feet tall. Originally seven others accompanied it. Three of them stood towards the centre and together with the present stone they formed a square. The four other stones stood in pairs flanking the single entrance to the henge, which is located on its east side. All of these stones were still standing in the 18th century but it is thought that the seven missing stones were subsequently removed to provide building material.
It is not known why Mayburgh Henge was constructed or what it was used for. Over the centuries several artefacts have been discovered within the vicinity of the henge, including a bronze axe, a stone axe and a flint arrowhead, but these shed little light on its probable use. Given the sheer size of the monument and the close proximity of two other henges, however, it must once have been a site of considerable importance. As nearby Eamont Bridge once lay at the hub of important north-south trade routes, which converged there to cross the River Eamont, it has been suggested that the henge may at least in part have been a trade centre where stone axes were distributed from the Neolithic axe factory at Langdale (www.flickr.com/photos/67668518@N08/8510532411/in/set-7215...). Other aspects of social and religious ritual would no doubt also have been of importance and it may be relevant that the entrance to the henge lies due east of its centre. The entrance thus frames the rising of the equinoctial sun, implying a cosmological role for the henge similar to nearby Long Meg stone circle (www.flickr.com/photos/67668518@N08/15294396479/). In more recent times Mayburgh Henge was used for May Day festivities. The site is a Scheduled Ancient Monument and it is currently managed by English Heritage.
The upper picture was taken looking south-westwards across the henge from the northern embankment. The entrance to the henge can be seen towards the left of the picture. The lower left picture shows the remaining standing stone at the centre of the henge and the bottom right picture was taken looking north-eastwards across the Eden valley towards the Pennines. The village of Eamont Bridge can be seen in the middle distance, where the ancient trade routes used to cross the River Eamont. The level-topped summit of Cross Fell (www.flickr.com/photos/67668518@N08/8539367707/) can be seen on the skyline behind the village, with Little Dun Fell and Great Dun Fell to the right.
Mayburgh Neolithic Henge
Mayburgh (“maidens’ fort”) Henge is a large and impressive construction that most probably dates back to the late Neolithic period (3000 to 2000 BC). It is located just south of the Cumbrian town of Penrith (“hill ford”), where it stands on a tongue of land that lies between the River Eamont (“water from the mountain” [?]) and the River Lowther (“foamy river”); close to the point where the two rivers combine. Situated close by are two other Neolithic henge monuments: “King Arthur’s Round Table” and the much smaller and less well known “Little Round Table”. Together the three henges form a group and they are sometimes referred to as the “Penrith Henges”.
Mayburgh is the largest and the best preserved of the Penrith Henges. Its circular embankment is 10 feet high in places and it encloses an inner area of approximately 1.5 acres. It is constructed from boulders that are thought to have been gathered from the nearby rivers. This is unlike the method used to construct most other henges from that period, where the embankments were built by piling up earth and rubble dug out of an associated ditch. It has been estimated that the embankment contains some 20,000 tons of stone and that it would take 1000 men six months to construct it without modern tools and machinery. Situated towards the centre of the henge is a single large standing stone, nearly 10 feet tall. Originally seven others accompanied it. Three of them stood towards the centre and together with the present stone they formed a square. The four other stones stood in pairs flanking the single entrance to the henge, which is located on its east side. All of these stones were still standing in the 18th century but it is thought that the seven missing stones were subsequently removed to provide building material.
It is not known why Mayburgh Henge was constructed or what it was used for. Over the centuries several artefacts have been discovered within the vicinity of the henge, including a bronze axe, a stone axe and a flint arrowhead, but these shed little light on its probable use. Given the sheer size of the monument and the close proximity of two other henges, however, it must once have been a site of considerable importance. As nearby Eamont Bridge once lay at the hub of important north-south trade routes, which converged there to cross the River Eamont, it has been suggested that the henge may at least in part have been a trade centre where stone axes were distributed from the Neolithic axe factory at Langdale (www.flickr.com/photos/67668518@N08/8510532411/in/set-7215...). Other aspects of social and religious ritual would no doubt also have been of importance and it may be relevant that the entrance to the henge lies due east of its centre. The entrance thus frames the rising of the equinoctial sun, implying a cosmological role for the henge similar to nearby Long Meg stone circle (www.flickr.com/photos/67668518@N08/15294396479/). In more recent times Mayburgh Henge was used for May Day festivities. The site is a Scheduled Ancient Monument and it is currently managed by English Heritage.
The upper picture was taken looking south-westwards across the henge from the northern embankment. The entrance to the henge can be seen towards the left of the picture. The lower left picture shows the remaining standing stone at the centre of the henge and the bottom right picture was taken looking north-eastwards across the Eden valley towards the Pennines. The village of Eamont Bridge can be seen in the middle distance, where the ancient trade routes used to cross the River Eamont. The level-topped summit of Cross Fell (www.flickr.com/photos/67668518@N08/8539367707/) can be seen on the skyline behind the village, with Little Dun Fell and Great Dun Fell to the right.