A HISTORY OF CORNWALL 



inclined to regard it as a cattle pen or pound, with an entrance at 

 the south-west corner, now partly choked by the settlement of the 



banks. 



FERNACRE 



The next two circles belong to quite a different class from those 

 already described, one of considerable area, irregular outline, and a large 

 number of stones in the ring, many of them small. Fernacre Circle 

 lies under the southern slope of Row Tor, 5 miles south-east of the 

 town of Camelford, and takes its name from the nearest farm ; it is 

 situated in St. Breward parish and the landowner is Sir W. Onslow. In 

 diameter alone it is one of the largest in Cornwall, being about 146 ft. 

 across, but the irregularity and small size of the stones reduce it to 

 quite an inferior rank ; it appears to correspond closely with W. C. 

 Borlase's definition of a ' ring barrow,' so many of the stones are set on 

 edge and close together, although not touching, but there is no tumulus 

 in the centre. Out of the sixty-nine stones shown in the plan thirty- 

 eight are standing, ten fallen, fourteen are buried, and seven have sunk so 

 far into the peaty soil that only their tops are visible. The tallest 

 standing stone (6) is but 4 ft. 6 in. high, and the largest fallen one (65) 

 measures 6 ft. 10 in. in length. All are of granite. The table of 

 dimensions includes only the more important stones, the great majority 

 being quite insignificant. 



About 1 60 ft. away, eastwards, in line with the highest point of 

 Brown Willy, is a small erect stone. Row Tor rises due north of the 

 circle, Garrow due south, and in line with these two hills and the circle 

 there lie, out of sight on the south as already mentioned, Stripple 

 Stones, on the slope of Hawk's Tor. On the east is Brown Willy, the 

 highest hill in Cornwall, and on the west, over the shoulder of Louden 

 Hill, is another circle, Stannon. Thus we have two lines crossing 

 Fernacre at right angles, or nearly so, for as a matter of fact the eastern 

 line formed by Brown Willy, Fernacre, and Stannon is 2 out. If, as 

 might appear probable, this very exact alignment, north and south, east 

 and west, was intentional and part of a plan, and Fernacre was the pivot 

 of the whole, it is a curious feature that the three circles mentioned 

 should have been so effectually hidden from each other by intervening 

 hills. Mr. A. L. Lewis has suggested that the diameters of these circles 

 and their distances apart bear certain fixed ratios to each other, expressed 



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