The purpose of Stanton Drew Stone Circles
Stanton Drew Stone Circles
The site I am studying is the Stanton Drew stone circles. These are located North East of the village see figures one and two. Stanton Drew is in the South West of Britain around 6 miles south of Bristol. The stones survived from a Neolithic period carbon dated to around 4,000 years ago.
The site consists of three stone circles: The Grand Circle, The North East Circle and The South East Circle which is inaccessible as it is in a private garden. There are other features including The Cove and Hautville's Quoit see figure 2.
The Great circle consists of 28 stones though it looks like there could have been at least 30 originally. These stones don't have a pattern to where they are placed as shown in diagram 3. The Diameter from North to South is around 115m and slightly less from East to west. The average distance between the stones (along a straight line) was 7.4m and the average height of the stones (the four remaining standing) was 2.47m. The Stones themselves seem to be from Dundry, 3 miles north as the same stone is found there, oolite or from local sources and made of Conglomerate. The stones are believed to represent male and female genitilier although as you can see from the photos they can hardly be recognised as 2 different types and it is doubtful the stones themselves were meant to represent this, however the site as a whole may represent fertility due to the nearness of the river and there being a connection with death, due to the bones found in the site there is a strong possibility that birth and life have a connection with the site. An Avenue extends from the Grand Circle heading downwards towards the River Chew, the avenue consists of 8 visible stones four in the north row and four in the south row. Another Avenue extends from the North East circle, which joins the avenue. The avenues may have been placed there to lead towards the River Chew as it was defiantly involved around the Stone circles in some way. However the avenue doesn't lead all the way to the river although the river may have been closer in the past or the rest of the stones leading to the river may have sank into the ground or been washed away.
The North Eastern Circle is around 30 m in diameter and consists of eight stones which are larger and in better condition than the stones from the other two circles and Avenues. The four stones on the southwestern side are still standing the other stones are still there but have toppled over. These stones seem to be around the same distance apart unlike those of the great circle. The average distance apart from the stones is 7.8 m and the average height of the stones which are still standing is 3.12m.This Stone Circle has an avenue heading off from the circles east side which joins with the avenue coming from the Great Circle.
A single stone used to stand north of the site named Hautville's Quoit, it was a larger standing stone made of Sarsen. The stone got broken up and pushed to the edge of the field by a farmer. This could have happened and probably did happen to the stones missing from the great circle and also stones may have had parts broken off them for use in buildings.
There is also a cove south west of the great circle. This Cove consists of 3 stones two of which are still standing. It is similar to the northern inner circle of Avebury. If the third stone had still been standing the cove would have been facing west towards the third stone circle, the South East Circle. This may have been used for something more special as the stones are bigger and as it is on higher ground. The Cove is facing west perhaps as the sun sets in the west this may have been a place where people died and were taken somewhere after as the setting sun may have been seen as death and because the cove is up on the hill.
There is a strong suggestion that there is a Henge running around the site as a geo fizz survey that was carried out by Bristol University revealed an anomaly running around the great circle. This would have put the site on a plateau and made it easier for Neolithic people to see it, as it obviously wanted being seen being such an achievement for the time. However the Henge is no longer there perhaps because of farmers having levelled the land or perhaps the nearby River Chew had washed it away when flooded. Other sites like Stonehenge and Avebury had a Henge running around them and it is likely that this site did also have a Henge.
There are two alignments. The first being from the cove through the centre of the great circle to the centre of the North East Circle. This alignment is broken up by the church probably due to a fear of the stones and as a measure to disrupt any - as believed at the time- evil around the stones. The other alignment is from The centre of the South East Circle through the centre of The great circle up to Hautville's Quoit. This second alignment could possibly have lined up with the north star in the sky. This tells ...
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There are two alignments. The first being from the cove through the centre of the great circle to the centre of the North East Circle. This alignment is broken up by the church probably due to a fear of the stones and as a measure to disrupt any - as believed at the time- evil around the stones. The other alignment is from The centre of the South East Circle through the centre of The great circle up to Hautville's Quoit. This second alignment could possibly have lined up with the north star in the sky. This tells us that they were reasonably intelligent in order to line them up right.
The whole site runs slightly up hill the lowest feature being the Avenues running to the north East Circle and the great circle. The next feature running up hill being The North East Circle followed closely by the great circle and then some distance away the South East Circle and The Cove. I think this height may have played an important role. The fact that the river is nearby may also play an important role as they would have used it as a supply but may also have used it for other activities.
I conclude that firstly the church disrupting the alignments may also have been responsible for vandalism of the stones because of them being 'evil'. Secondly we can learn from our visit to Stanton Drew, about what the people were like. The fact that they managed to move these boulders 3 miles suggests that they must have had good co-operational skills and believed quite strongly in what they were doing in order to build such a grand site
Question 2 - Do other sources support or contradict what you have learned?
There are many beliefs as to the purpose of Stanton Drew Stone Circles. As the stones are prehistoric or before writing there is no way to find out exactly what they were although there are many theories. Here are the theories as to their purpose and also an evaluation of each source saying whether it is valid, as well as whether these sources could have been an actual purpose of the stones.
Source 1
"This noble monument is vulgarly called the Weddings; and they say, tis a company that assisted at a nuptial solemnity thus petrify'd. In an orchard near the church is a cove consisting of 3 stones... this they called the parson, the bride, and bridegroom. Other circles are said to be the company dancing; and a separate parcel of stones standing a little from the rest are call'd the fiddlers, or the band of music."
William Stukeley 1743
The local belief is that the stones of Stanton Drew represent a wedding party, turned into stone by continuing their party through Saturday night to Sunday morning. This idea may have been promoted by local people due to a fear of Paganism. This idea has had thought put into it about the amount of stones and their position however the stones shape does not in the slightest resemble that of the human figure from our observations of them at the site. Also there is no proven evidence that people can be turned into stone and this theory can be disregarded immediately.
Source 2
"No one, say the country people about Stanton drew, was ever able to reckon the number of these metamorphosed stones, or to take a draught of them, though several have attempted to do both, and proceeded till they were either struck dead upon the spot, or with such an illness as soon carried them off."
John Wood Description of Bath 1749
This source is another source that can be disregarded immediately as we have counted the stones ourselves and not been struck down. This was probably promoted due to a fear of the stones so that people would stay away from them and consider them evil. Due to a lack of understanding of them. This source shouldn't be trusted as it is mainly hear say and probably has changed countless times before being written by John Wood.
Source 3
"There is a tradition that Hautville's Quoit was thrown by Sir John Hautville from maes Knoll, an Iron Age earth work on the hill to the north, said to have been formed of scrapings from Sir John's spade. For this deed he was somewhat scantily rewarded with the Manor of Norton; feeling that it was too little he is said to have called it Norton Malreward, a name that it still bears."
This source has elements of truth, the Hautville family flourished in the vicinity from about Ad 1230 to about 1330. Although Sir John Hautville most likely didn't receive Norton for throwing Hautville's Quoit but for another deed to which he may have called Norton, Norton Malreward for this other deed. The stone itself is far to large for any human to throw making this theory unlikely.
Source 4
The St Michael ley from St Michaels mount to Bury St Edmunds. The north-south ley through Arbor Low and Stonehenge and the isosceles triangle with Arbor Low at its apex.
The lines are accurate to a few hundred yards but the significance of Mersea Island is not clear and the side of the triangle which should be equal are not quite so. Also there are quite a few stone circle sites in Britain and the ones that didn't line up could be disregarded in order to show that the ones that did were more prominent. Also the monuments are built of different periods and may not be associated with each other.
Source 5
"According to the science of Feng Shui, which is based on a subtle conception of the order of nature far from our own today, there are currents - perhaps magnetic, Eitel hazards - within the earth's surface. Like electricity, these have positive and negative aspects, male and female, which the Chinese symbolized as the azure dragon and the white tiger. These dragon and tiger lines flow through the landscape and, in the angle close to where they cross and temporarily combine, 'there may be a luck bringing site,' if in the same place there is also 'a tranquil harmony of all the heavenly and terrestrial elements,' including the direction of water courses. Now, the happy site is almost always sheltered by hills, slightly elevated within them and connected to them by land through which the geodic currents flow."
Feng Shui is not a science but a belief. It is believed by some that where the stones are placed has a spiritual significance but there is no proof. This source is valid but it is commenting on a belief rather than an actual theory as to their purpose.
Source 6
The most recent theory is that the stones are a calendar, when the sun rises behind certain stones it would signify to the people what time of year that it is.
This theory Is the most probable because Neolithic people would have needed information on when to start trying for children and also on farming for harvesting and other farming times. They could have found this out from the calendar by looking at when the sun rises from behind certain Stones and as these stones would change during the course of the year certain stones would be significant for a certain purpose. Having not seen the sun rise from behind certain stones ourselves we must take this theory to be valid from evidence from other peoples sources. The key events are on the following days - The summer solstice - 21st June. The Winter Solstice - 21st December. The Spring Equinox - 21st March. The autumn equinox - 21st September.
Question 3 - Using all the evidence available state whether you agree or disagree with the hypothesis
Hypothesis: The Stone Circles at Stanton Drew were built purely for religious reasons.
The Stone Circles at Stanton Drew are over 3,500 years old, which makes them pre-historic and from a time before writing. This means that there is no way to know their actual purpose. However we can make most likely accurate assumptions on what remains -the stone themselves- and from results of Geo Physical Surveys (see figure 5a and b) and excavation. Each generation has their own decision on the stones purpose depending upon the society they were brought up into and the culture at the time.
There are two alignments. The first being from the cove through the centre of the great circle to the centre of the North East Circle. This alignment is broken up by the church probably due to a fear of the stones and as a measure to disrupt any - as believed at the time- evil around the stones. The other alignment is from the centre of the South East Circle through the centre of the great circle up to Hautville's Quoit. This second alignment could possibly have lined up with the North Star in the sky at the time. Other Stones line up with the sun rising at certain times in the year, The summer solstice, the winter solstice and possibly the Autumn and winter Equinoxes. This would help with information on farming because it would help them if they needed to know when to plough or harvest. It would also help with fertility because it would give them the information they needed to know when to try and have children in order for them to arrive at the right time of year. It would be hard for them at the time to comprehend childbirth and so may have been taken down as something as a result of a God or higher being.
This is important as the children's survival kept the number of tribe's people up, as the death rate was undoubtedly high and without enough tribe's people society would have collapsed as there wouldn't have been enough people to carry out the basic functions. This links with religion because in these types of society changes in weather and season generally are interpreted as an act of a God. Tribes such as the Aztecs, the Incas, the Native Americans and African tribes. The nature of this information is scientific as it is to do with alignments of the stones and the sun. This evidence strongly supports the assumption that the stones are of a calendar.
Animal and human bones have been excavated from similar sites to Stanton Drew. This could be interpreted as sacrifices being made to Gods, as this is what the Incas did also. Evidence supporting this is that it is unlikely to be a burial site as firstly there are animal bones and secondly there are other known burial sites called long barrows the nearest one being in Nempnett Thrubwell. Sacrifices could have been made to a God of water as the stream is nearby and the avenues seem to be leading towards it. Other stone circle sites also have long barrows nearby such as Avebury with the East and West Kennet long barrows. The sun is aligned with these long barrows and shines right into them when it rises on the Winter Solstice for the East and the Summer Solstice for the West. However this is not the case with Stanton Drew. It is also believed that Neolithic people may have taken the bodies of their ancestors out of the tombs and performed ceremonies with them. This is thought for a few reasons; firstly several current tribes take bodies out of ancestral tombs and perform ceremonies with them, secondly the alignments at Avebury are significant and must be recognized as something significant, it can't just be coincidental. Thirdly and lastly the tombs had been left open for thousands of years why had they not been closed if not to take their ancestors bodies out of the tombs again. This evidence is not completely reliable because we are basing our evidence on tribes that are like the Neolithic people but however not the same so there are differences between them and this may or may not have been one of them. However there is also the fact of the alignments, this evidence is reliable and can be used because is scientifically proved.
The Cove at Stanton Drew would have most likely faced West if all 3 stones remained standing. This must have some cultural significance because the sun sets in the west. It may have been a key part also because the Cove is on the highest point on the site perhaps to do with importance. There is no doubt that Neolithic people would have had a slight sense of mystery surrounding he sun, having seen it light the sky would show them something somewhat powerful. This piece of evidence would promote the hypothesis of the site being purely religious. However it isn't sufficient enough by itself to prove the hypothesis as it only concentrates on a small area of the entire site. However it does contribute somewhat to the hypothesis as it brings the possibility that part of the site is religious.
Another belief is that the stones are strategically placed in order to flow with currents beneath the earth's surface. Theses currents are said to consist have two aspects, positive and negative. This aspect of the stones is a belief as to why they were placed where they were rather than their purpose. It links with religion because certain stones might have been placed in certain areas in order to symbolise certain key parts of their daily lives and their lives in general. The nature of this evidence is that it's a religious belief more than scientific, legend or hear say. It is quite complex information and can have several different ways of interpreting because of the ways the positions can be interpreted. This evidence cannot be seen as reliable or unreliable as it is more a belief as to their placement. This links with religion because it is a belief as to their placement. It also promotes the fact that the site is purely religious. This information also isn't sufficient by itself to prove the hypothesis.
Lay lines are believed to link several sites across the country as shown in the diagram from question 2. These lines are believed to provide power from the earth where they cross, as they are special outlets of earthly power. This is believed by mother earth religions. The evidence seems unreliable as sites in a line could just be joined up and ones not disregarded as there are many sites around Britain. The ley lines are also not completely accurate and some pass up to a hundred yards to the left and right of the site instead of straight through. These ley lines also don't seem to serve a significant purpose unlike the alignments in the stone circles themselves apart from the belief of power given off where the lines converge at such places as Avebury. This evidence is mainly belief and is neither complex nor reliable.
What is certain surrounding the stones is that they would have taken many man-hours to construct and so must have been something incredibly important to the people at the time. This leads us to believe that the stone circles had more than one use because that way their importance would have increased.
The Geological physical survey (figure 5a and b) shows us that there are circles inside one another descending in circumference accordingly. Theses circles are believed to be made of wood and could have meant that the further you were allowed towards the centre the more important you could be and closer to there God so to speak as in other religions. Also the Geo physical survey shows us that there previously was a henge running around the great circle. This would make the site stand slightly above the surrounding area and make it look grander.
On balance the evidence suggests that the sight was not built purely for religious reasons. The evidence suggests that the Stone Circles have multiple uses. Theses include evidence of sacrifices and rituals. The stone circles also seem to have practical uses from information on farming about when to harvest and other times of farming significance to fertility and information on when to try and have children in order to increase the likelihood of survival. Other unjustified uses of the stones would be to impress neighbouring tribes and general socialisation is quite likely. Overall it seems that the site was built partly for religious and partly for other reasons and so based on the evidence the answer is most likely no the site was not built for purely religious reasons but for many different varied reasons.