Featured: Explore Scotland (and everywhere else) with our Megalithic Portal iPhone app

Explore Scotland (and everywhere else) with our Megalithic Portal iPhone app

Inscribed Across the Landscape: The Cursus Monuments of Great Britain

Inscribed Across the Landscape: The Cursus Monuments of Great Britain

Who's Online

There are currently, 563 guests and 3 members online.

You are a guest. To join in, please register for free by clicking here

Sponsors

<< Text Pages >> Greylake Mesolithic open-air cemetery - Natural Stone / Erratic / Other Natural Feature in England in Somerset

Submitted by MikeAitch on Thursday, 11 August 2011  Page Views: 8549

Natural PlacesSite Name: Greylake Mesolithic open-air cemetery
Country: England
NOTE: This site is 1.987 km away from the location you searched for.

County: Somerset Type: Natural Stone / Erratic / Other Natural Feature
Nearest Town: Bridgwater  Nearest Village: Middlezoy
Map Ref: ST393335
Latitude: 51.097578N  Longitude: 2.868226W
Condition:
5Perfect
4Almost Perfect
3Reasonable but with some damage
2Ruined but still recognisable as an ancient site
1Pretty much destroyed, possibly visible as crop marks
0No data.
-1Completely destroyed
1 Ambience:
5Superb
4Good
3Ordinary
2Not Good
1Awful
0No data.
no data Access:
5Can be driven to, probably with disabled access
4Short walk on a footpath
3Requiring a bit more of a walk
2A long walk
1In the middle of nowhere, a nightmare to find
0No data.
no data Accuracy:
5co-ordinates taken by GPS or official recorded co-ordinates
4co-ordinates scaled from a detailed map
3co-ordinates scaled from a bad map
2co-ordinates of the nearest village
1co-ordinates of the nearest town
0no data
3

Internal Links:
External Links:

Recent radiocarbon dating of two skulls that were found at a sand quarry in Greylake nature reserve has revealed them to be 10,000 years old, making them the oldest cemetery yet discovered in the UK, according to Somerset county council. The skulls were found in 1928 and are held in the Blake Museum in Bridgwater.

The dating was done by a team investigating the archaeology of the Somerset Levels as part of the 'Lost Islands of Somerset' project.
They came from the remains of five bodies discovered in 1928 at the sand quarry in Greylake, which is part of a raised island of hard rock above the surrounding Levels and Moors floodplain.

Somerset County Councillor Christine Lawrence, Cabinet Member for Community services said: "Somerset's wonderfully rich heritage plays a big part in attracting visitors. I'm delight that this project has thrown new light on to these exciting finds."

This internationally important discovery shows that by around 8,300 BC Mesolithic (Middle Stone Age) hunter-gatherers were burying their dead on the island. All the other human remains from this early period in Britain have been found in caves such as Aveline's Hole in Somerset, which is the largest Mesolithic burial ground in the UK.

Dr Richard Brunning, from Somerset County Council's Heritage Service who is leading the Lost Islands of Somerset Project, said: "This was amazing news and was just the result we were hoping for. It shows that a Mesolithic hunter-gatherer group was operating from the island and burying its dead there. Such open air cemeteries are extremely rare in Europe and this is the only one known from the UK."

Flint tools were also found in large numbers on the site in the 1950s suggesting that it was used as a long-term camp site. More analysis will be carried out on the skulls and the tools to shed light on how this ancient community lived and died.

Source: Somerset County Council

More, with a photo at BBC News

[I have estimated the location of this find based on the high ground shown on the 1:25000 OS map from Streetmap, which would presumably have formed the island referred to - MegP Ed]
You may be viewing yesterday's version of this page. To see the most up to date information please register for a free account.


Do not use the above information on other web sites or publications without permission of the contributor.

Nearby Images from Geograph Britain and Ireland:
ST3933 : Langacre Rhyne, in winter by Roger Cornfoot
by Roger Cornfoot
©2010(licence)
ST3933 : Sowy River by Nigel Mykura
by Nigel Mykura
©2010(licence)
ST3933 : Langacre Rhyne by Nigel Mykura
by Nigel Mykura
©2010(licence)
ST3933 : Track near Greylake by Nigel Mykura
by Nigel Mykura
©2010(licence)
ST3933 : The A361 seen from the bridge over Langacre Rhyne by Rob Purvis
by Rob Purvis
©2022(licence)

The above images may not be of the site on this page, they are loaded from Geograph.
Please Submit an Image of this site or go out and take one for us!


Click here to see more info for this site

Nearby sites

Click here to view sites on an interactive OS map

Key: Red: member's photo, Blue: 3rd party photo, Yellow: other image, Green: no photo - please go there and take one, Grey: site destroyed

Download sites to:
KML (Google Earth)
GPX (GPS waypoints)
CSV (Garmin/Navman)
CSV (Excel)

To unlock full downloads you need to sign up as a Contributory Member. Otherwise downloads are limited to 50 sites.


Turn off the page maps and other distractions

Nearby sites listing. In the following links * = Image available
 3.2km WNW 288° Westonzoyland Cursus Cursus (ST36263450)
 6.4km SW 229° Athelney* Hillfort (ST344293)
 6.4km ESE 117° High Ham Cursus Cursus (ST45013048)
 6.5km N 356° Holy Well (Edington)* Holy Well or Sacred Spring (ST3888639970)
 6.9km WNW 302° Chedzoy Cursus Cursus (ST33503721)
 7.7km NNW 343° Sulphur spring Holy Well or Sacred Spring (ST37124085)
 7.9km NNE 22° Sweet Track* Ancient Trackway (ST424408)
 8.5km NNE 22° Avalon Marshes Visitor Centre* Museum (ST426413)
 9.1km NNE 22° Peat Moors Centre* Museum (ST429419)
 9.2km E 97° Dundon Hill* Hillfort (ST484322)
 9.3km E 99° Dundon Beacon Barrow* Round Barrow(s) (ST485319)
 9.4km NNE 15° Abbot's Way* Ancient Trackway (ST419425)
 10.2km NNE 32° Meare Lake Village Ancient Village or Settlement (ST4472642100)
 10.9km SSW 197° St. Catherine's Well (Swell)* Holy Well or Sacred Spring (ST360231)
 11.1km E 91° New Ditch* Ancient Village or Settlement (ST504332)
 11.8km WNW 290° St. John's Well (Somerset)* Holy Well or Sacred Spring (ST282377)
 11.9km ENE 62° Market Cross (Glastonbury) Ancient Cross (ST4987538924)
 11.9km ENE 62° Glastonbury Lake Village Museum* Museum (ST499389)
 11.9km ENE 63° St Joseph's Well* Holy Well or Sacred Spring (ST49993883)
 12.0km ENE 64° Omphalos Stone (Glastonbury Abbey)* Natural Stone / Erratic / Other Natural Feature (ST501387)
 12.3km NE 53° Glastonbury Lake Village* Ancient Village or Settlement (ST493407)
 12.4km ENE 66° Chalice Well* Holy Well or Sacred Spring (ST507385)
 12.5km ENE 66° White Spring (Somerset)* Holy Well or Sacred Spring (ST5073238506)
 12.9km ENE 66° Glastonbury Tor* Ancient Village or Settlement (ST51223861)
 13.6km NW 316° Pawlett Cursus Cursus (ST300435)
View more nearby sites and additional images

<< Berberoglu Ayazmasi

Museo e Area Archeologica della Maddalena di Chiomonte >>

Please add your thoughts on this site

Understanding the Neolithic

Understanding the Neolithic

Sponsors

Auto-Translation (Google)

Translate from English into:

"Greylake Mesolithic open-air cemetery" | Login/Create an Account | 3 News and Comments
  
Go back to top of page    Comments are owned by the poster. We aren't responsible for their content.
Re: The Lost Islands of Somerset' project by Andy B on Thursday, 01 November 2012
(User Info | Send a Message)
From 2011:

Radiocarbon dating of two human skulls has produced evidence of a 10,000 year old cemetery near Middlezoy. The remains were originally discovered in 1928 at a sand quarry at Greylake, a small island of hard geology in the floodplain of the Somerset Levels and Moors. At least 5 skulls and some long bones were found. Only two skulls and four tibiae fragments survive.

A large number of flint tools have also been found from the Greylake site. No other site in the country has this combination of human remains and tool evidence for prolonged activity. Analysis of the bones showed that the group at Greylake had a protein rich terrestrial diet reflecting the importance of hunting to this community.

More at
http://www.selrc.org.uk/news.php?view=current#14
[ Reply to This ]

Finds are from country's only open-air Mesolithic cemetery by coldrum on Sunday, 23 October 2011
(User Info | Send a Message)
Finds are from country's only open-air Mesolithic cemetery

Mesolithic, meaning Middle Stone Age, followed the last Ice Age when the cold climate and lack of food resources forced the human population to retreat to Southern Europe.

With sea levels still low enough to allow tribes to follow their prey, hunter-gatherers began to repopulate part of Southern Britain.



Britain would not have been cut off from mainland Europe for another 2,000 years after the Greylake community had been formed.

And farming would not be established for another 4,000 years.

Further scientific evidence has shown that the group at Greylake ate a protein-rich diet, from meat that itself lived in the area, making Greylake a classic hunter-gatherer community.

While Greylake represents Britain's only open-air Mesolithic cemetery, other mass burial sites have been found but all of them in caves.

Notable earlier sites includes Gough's Cave, Cheddar.

The largest cemetery site is Aveline's Hole, a cave at Burrington Combe that is just 15 miles away to the north of Greylake and where people were 'buried' at around the same time as Greylake.

Further analysis may help to uncover any connection between the two groups of Mesolithic Somerset residents.

Originally five skulls were discovered in 1928, but three were later lost, possibly due to the bombing of the Royal College of Surgeons during the Second World War.

Apart from the two remaining skull pieces, there is also four human shin bones which will also now undergo further examination.

The first archaeologists who found the burials in 1928 thought they may be from the Battle of Sedgemoor.

The two skulls are thought to be the ones once in the possession of geologist and archaeologist Professor Boyd Dawkins, a friend of Charles Darwin who once recommended him for a leading position.

Evidence of tools used in Mesolithic times have also been found and are either held by the Blake Museum, Bridgwater, or by the county museum service.

One of the skulls will be on temporary display in the Blake Museum from tomorrow with a permanent display to be developed later.

The Lost Islands Project is looking for any local people who have memories of the Greylake sand quarries when they were in use.

Contact Richard Brunning at heritage@somerset.gov.uk or Dr Peter Cattermole hon.curator @bridgwatermuseum.org.uk at the Blake Museum, tele[hone: (01278) 845127.

http://www.thisissomerset.co.uk/Finds-country-s-open-air-Mesolithic-cemetery/story-13025838-detail/story.html
[ Reply to This ]

The Lost Islands of Somerset' project by Andy B on Thursday, 11 August 2011
(User Info | Send a Message)
Exploring Somerset’s Lost Islands
Somerset Heritage Service has won funding of
£29,500 from the Somerset Levels and Moors
Local Action for Rural Communities (LARC)
group towards a community archaeology project
which will investigate the ‘islands’ of hard
geology in Somerset’s floodplains.

These places have been the focus for human
activity for the last 10,000 years, from the
earliest hunter-gather communities to the
present day. Many settlements such as Chedzoy,
Meare, Wedmore, Brent Knoll, Middlezoy,
Westonzoyland, Burtle, Muchelney and Ilchester
are located on the islands, although their
special location is not always apparent, even to
residents.

The three-year project aims to discover more
about the long and fascinating history of these
‘lost Islands’ and to promote wider appreciation
of their unique character. College and university
students, schools and the general public will all
have the opportunity to be involved in historical
research and archaeological excavations. It is
intended that the project will provide training
to help people research their local area and
to continue to find out more about the islands
beyond the life of the project.

Source: Somerset Heritage Newsletter, April 2010
[ Reply to This ]

Your Name: Anonymous [ Register Now ]
Subject:


Add your comment or contribution to this page. Spam or offensive posts are deleted immediately, don't even bother

<<< What is five plus one as a number? (Please type the answer to this question in the little box on the left)
You can also embed videos and other things. For Youtube please copy and paste the 'embed code'.
For Google Street View please include Street View in the text.
Create a web link like this: <a href="https://www.megalithic.co.uk">This is a link</a>  

Allowed HTML is:
<p> <b> <i> <a> <img> <em> <br> <strong> <blockquote> <tt> <li> <ol> <ul> <object> <param> <embed> <iframe>

We would like to know more about this location. Please feel free to add a brief description and any relevant information in your own language.
Wir möchten mehr über diese Stätte erfahren. Bitte zögern Sie nicht, eine kurze Beschreibung und relevante Informationen in Deutsch hinzuzufügen.
Nous aimerions en savoir encore un peu sur les lieux. S'il vous plaît n'hesitez pas à ajouter une courte description et tous les renseignements pertinents dans votre propre langue.
Quisieramos informarnos un poco más de las lugares. No dude en añadir una breve descripción y otros datos relevantes en su propio idioma.