Boscawen-Un Stone Circle
near Lands End,
close to St Buryan, Cornwall
Click on
Images to see a larger version
Boscawen-Un is a Bronze age stone circle close to St Buryan
in Cornwall.
It consists of 19 upright stones in an ellipse with diameters 24.9m and
21.9m, (82x73 feet) with another, leaning, stone just south of the centre. There is a
west-facing gap in the circle, which may have formed an entrance.
The stone in the centre is 8 feet long (2.5m),
standing 6ft 2 inches, research suggests it was installed initially at this
angle. Other stones range from 0.9m to 1.5 metres (5 feet) with the smooth sides
facing the interior of the ring. The nineteen stones are rather evenly spaced,
and the wide gap at the west suggests an astronomical alignment similar to the
nearby Merry Maidens.
During the summer months, the circle is at some
times nearly concealed by high bracken, at others well cut and maintained.
It is popular with various new age religions
and some older.
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Leaning central pillar and circle -
See here for Picture Details
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Some have seen light balls, and others such
features when there in the dark, but most see them unexpectedly, clearly when
sober and not on anything, and see them only once, even if they return many
times.
The leaning stone aligns exactly with the centre stone at the Mên-an-Tol and
the church at nearby St Buryan, which may have been the site of an earlier stone
circle,. While this may conceivably be coincidental, the precision of the
alignment suggests an intentional positioning of the three structures in
relation to each other.
D Dafoe 'A Tour through Great Britain' 1724
says "Between this town (Penzance) and St Burien, a town midway between it and
Land's End, stands a circle of great stones, not unlike those at Stonehenge, in
Wiltshire, with one bigger than the rest in the middle. They stand about 12 feet
asunder, but have no inscription; neither does tradition offer to leave any of
their history upon record, as to whether it was a trophy or a monument of
burial, or an alter for worship, or what else; so that all that can be learned
from them is that here they are. The parish where they stand is called Boscawone,
from whence the ancient and honourable family of Boscawen derive their name."
It has been featured since in many books.
Boskawen-Un is Late Cornish meaning "The
dwelling by the elder tree on the down".
Click on
Images to see a larger version
See also
Our
section on stone circles
The discussion on the purpose of stone circles
Planning Grid
Location: |
Boscawen-Un Stone Circle near Lands End,
close to St Buryan, Cornwall |
Grid Reference |
SW412274
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Map Link: |
Multimap
Google Maps aerial photograph |
Getting there: |
A few hundred metres south of the A30, 1.5km
north of St Buryan. |
Access: |
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Parking: |
Lay-by on main road or lay-by down farm road. |
Facilities: |
None |
Things To Do,
See and Photograph: |
Circle, but specifically central stone. |
What to take: |
Wide angle lens, you may want to wear items
suitable for walking though gorse, etc and if it has recently rained
suitable for walking through some mud. |
Nature highlights: |
One quotation says "Looking over Boscawen Un
from the western field hedge late afternoon in (late) May, with the site a
riot of colour - not just Bluebells, but white May blossom and pink
Champions and many others." |
Best Times to
Visit: |
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Address: |
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Postcode: |
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Telephone: |
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E-mail: |
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Website: |
http://www.themodernantiquarian.com/site/229/boskawenun.html |
Opening times: |
Open at all times |
Charges: |
none |
Photo Restrictions: |
none |
Other Restrictions: |
none |
Special Needs Access: |
Footpath may be unsuitable for those with
wheelchairs. |
Special Needs Facilities: |
none |
Children Facilities: |
As it appears that the hedges and undergrowth
at times is overgrown, you may be lucky or unlucky. |
Dogs Allowed: |
No information, suggest they are on leads if
taken, and not taken into the circle, which some groups use for ceremonial
use. |
Other useful
websites: |
Used for first
inaugural of -
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gorseth_Kernow
http://www.megalithic.co.uk/article.php?sid=22 |
CIN Page Ref: |
boscawen-un_stone_circle |
Date Updated:02/08 |
Please let us know any other information that we
can add to this Planning Grid or page and any errors that you discover. Before making a long trip to any location it is always
wise to double check the current information, websites like magazines may be
correct at the time the information is written, but things change and it is of
course impossible to double check all entries on a regular basis. If you have
any good photographs that you feel would improve the illustration of this page
then please let us have copies. In referring to this page it is helpful if you
quote the CIN Page Ref at the bottom of the Planning Grid above. To print the
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