A HISTORY OF CORNWALL 



of Liskeard. In a description of these circles and a survey of their 

 history very little can be added to the paper by Mr. C. W. Dymond, 

 F.S.A., in the "Journal of the British Archaeological Association (30 Sep- 

 tember, 1879), and it is with his kind permission that this article is 

 illustrated by his admirably drawn plan, which though made in 1877 

 is still (1902) a correct representation of the monument. 



The three circles lie north-north-east and south-south-west, but 

 not in line, for we may put it that the northern circle is slightly east 

 of the axis of the other two. The diameters are: N., 114 feet; 

 middle, 140 feet; S., 108 feet. The following stones remain: N., 6 

 standing, 6 fallen ; middle, 8 standing, 5 fallen ; S., 2 standing, 9 

 fallen ; and in addition several of the so-called erect stones are leaning. 

 The ground within the circles is rent and torn by numerous trial-pits 

 dug in search of tin or copper, and by the removal of masses of moor- 

 stone lying on or near the surface. Besides this many stones have been 

 removed from the rings themselves. 



Without the line of circles, 386 ft. west of the centre of the 

 middle one, are two large stones so placed that a line drawn through 

 both and produced would be tangential to the southern limb of the middle 

 circle. These two stones are both leaning and look as if they might fall 

 before long. What they were for, or what their relation to the Hurlers, 

 it is impossible to say. They may have formed part of another circle 

 or of a stone row or avenue. 



The moors around, like the Bodmin moors, furnish many examples 

 of early habitation. On the Cheesewring Hill is an ancient hill-fortress; 

 several barrows are found in the neighbourhood, from one of which 

 came a most interesting gold cup, found in 1818 j 1 further north are 

 numerous hut-circles. 



A suggestive parallel may be established between these circles and 

 those at Stanton Drew in Somersetshire ; 2 in each case there are 

 three circles lying in a north-north-westerly direction, not quite in line, 

 but deviating in the same way ; in each case the central ring is the largest ; 

 in each case there are two outlying stones. There are considerable 

 discrepancies also which may be noted : (a) the Somersetshire circles 

 and the individual stones which compose them are on a much larger 

 scale ; (b) the northern circle is there the smallest ; (c) the outlying 

 stones at Stanton Drew, the ' cove and a monolith are aligned with the 

 centres in a remarkable manner' ; (a 1 ) there are two short avenues attached 

 to the circles. It is nevertheless curious that these two prehistoric monu- 

 ments, so far apart geographically, should yet have so much in common. 

 Why stone circles should be grouped in twos and threes is a mystery, and 

 greatly complicates the problem of their origin and object. 



Whereas on the Bodmin moors we had to deplore the absence of 

 records of the past state of the various circles, we are met here by a 

 literary embarras de richesse, a crowd of commentators, more or less un- 



1 Ntfnia Cornubitf, pp. 37-41. 



1 C. W. Dymond, The Ancient Remains at S.'anton Drew (1896). 



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