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The Stone Circles of Britain, Ireland and Brittany, Aubrey Burl |
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Photo Pages: Boscawen Un - Stone Circle in England in Cornwall
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Submitted by Tom Bullock on Tuesday, 17 September 2002 Page Views: 14213
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 Site Name: Boscawen Un Alternate Name: Boscawen-Un, Nine Maidens
Country: England County: Cornwall Type: Stone Circle
Nearest Town: Penzance Nearest Village: St Buryan
Map Ref: SW41222736 Landranger Map Number: 203
Latitude: 50.089857N Longitude: 5.619272W
Condition:| 5 | Perfect | | 4 | Almost Perfect | | 3 | Reasonable but with some damage | | 2 | Ruined but still recognisable as an ancient site | | 1 | Pretty much destroyed, possibly visible as crop marks | | 0 | No data. | | -1 | Completely destroyed |
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Ambience:| 5 | Superb | | 4 | Good | | 3 | Ordinary | | 2 | Not Good | | 1 | Awful | | 0 | No data. |
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Access:| 5 | Can be driven to, probably with disabled access | | 4 | Short walk on a footpath | | 3 | Requiring a bit more of a walk | | 2 | A long walk | | 1 | In the middle of nowhere, a nightmare to find | | 0 | No data. |
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Accuracy:| 5 | co-ordinates taken by GPS or official recorded co-ordinates | | 4 | co-ordinates scaled from a detailed map | | 3 | co-ordinates scaled from a bad map | | 2 | co-ordinates of the nearest village | | 1 | co-ordinates of the nearest town | | 0 | no data |
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External Links:             
   Boscawen Un submitted by AngieLake
Stone Circle in Cornwall. The focus of fascination with this evocative circle is certainly the pillar located in the centre. Although it is a full 2.5m (8 feet) in length, it leans at such an angle that its tip is only 1.9m (6 feet 2 inches) above the ground. Excavation has revealed evidence that it was installed in the leaning position.
The large circle is actually an oval 25m (82 feet) SE-NW by 22.3 (73 feet). The nineteen stones are rather evenly spaced, and the wide gap at the west suggests an astronomical alignment similar to the nearby Merry Maidens. The stones vary from 0.9m (3 feet) to 1.5m (5 feet) in height, with the smooth sides facing the interior of the ring.
Access The circle is a few hundred metres south of the A30 west of Drift, 1.5km north of St Buryan. There are several ways of getting there, although the route south from the layby on the A30 is the most staightforward (see the comments below).
 Boscawen Un submitted by AngieLake
A stone on the western arc of the circle, with the May tree (close to the SW white quartz stone) in blossom.
May 09.
 Boscawen Un submitted by AngieLake
The stone in foreground is to your left on entering the field from the farm lane approach. It doesn't seem to have been featured on here before. Is it a fallen outlier at approx NE?
 Boscawen Un submitted by thrip
Boscawen Un. August 2007
 Boscawen Un submitted by thrip
 Boscawen Un submitted by bazcross
Boscawen Un 28.05.08
Part of the circle amid profusion of Bluebells and other wild flowers. Possibly the best time of year to be at Boscawen Un?
 Boscawen Un submitted by bazcross
The quartz stone showing textural detail.
 Boscawen Un submitted by Rodaan
A perfect afternoon, 4pm, 22nd May 2007. There were so many bluebells - covering the area between the A30 and the circle - that they were even growing down the centre of the path. Sublimely wonderful.
 Boscawen Un submitted by john7
Boscawen un- December 2007
 Boscawen Un submitted by knap
Difficult to photograph this site without a wide-angle lens, only one accessible vantage point.
 Boscawen Un submitted by AngieLake
This is the most magical approach to any stone circle. Walking down from the kissing-gate at the lay-by, you do catch a glimpse of the leaning stone, then lose it again, until you come upon this bower-like entrance. Large stones sticking out of the hedge in front of you form a stile. The view from the top of it is great, esp. when the bluebells are in flower, late May.
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Metallurgical Reports on British and Irish Bronze Age Implements |
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| "Boscawen Un" | Login/Create an Account | 21 comments |
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My Quest for Boscawen_Un (Score: 0)
by Anonymous on Sunday, 02 June 2002 | My Quest for Boscawen_Un
By Aella
And so the quest for the stone circle called Boscawen-Un, in Cornwall, began. I knew it was near St. Buryan so we drove around there a bit first. Well, we drove quite a lot actually. I was looking for a sign or something, but found nothing. Eventually, we drove back to the village and asked directions from an old man who was working in his shed. He told us that it was just along the road, and sounded surprised that we had missed it. I felt a bit confused when he asked John if I was the jealous type as “they were once beautiful young women.”
We found the circle easily enough. There was a signpost with a lay-by just next to it, but it wasn't the right circle. This site turned out to be the Merry Maidens, a nice enough circle, but not the one that I had traveled so far to find. At least the old man’s question now made sense.
Next we headed back to the village and the post office where I intended to ask the clerk about Boscawen. When I went inside, there were two ladies already waiting to be served. As I waited myself, I looked over at one of the women and thought that she looked… Well, you know how people have “the look” as if they would know what you need to know? I just asked her if she could help me, and indeed, she did know and went to great lengths to explain exactly how to get there. It would not be easy she told me, but “when you see the kissing gate, you'll know that you're there.” We were to climb over the gate and go straight ahead. Before we left, she put her arms around me and wished me good luck.
And so, we found the spot! The path had obviously not been walked in months. It was shoulder high in bracken and ankle tripping high in brambles, but on we traipsed. Then John told me to look in the ploughed field across the way where there was a sort of ring of stones, but all of them were laying flat. We climbed a barbed wire fence to go look at them. I assumed that they were the stones, and that either the farmer had dug them up or that vandals had knocked them down or something.
With disappointment written all over my face, we headed back to the van. I had to know if we had really seen them so we stopped at the nearest house where I asked a very nice couple if I had indeed seen Boscawen-Un.
The man was all set to send us back to the Merry Maidens, but the woman knew better. She told us that we had been on the right track, but we had not walked far enough. Well, that was that, or so I thought.
We had already been on this quest of mine about three hours, and I didn't think that John would drive down that road again. To my delight, he put the key in the ignition and swung the van round saying that people would be starting to wonder about the odd couple driving down the same road for the tenth time.
From then on it was just a matter of "action re-play" but walking a lot further this time. After a while John hoisted me up onto a nearby bank and there before us was what is believed to be the first monument built by a band of druids who had come to Britain to preach an early form of Christianity.
It was made with stones of local granite with just one exception, a beautiful, large rounded block of quartz. And on this block lay a silver bracelet with two tokens placed inside. Maybe it was a call for love, or perhaps for a re-union. Only the one who placed it there truly knows.
Here was this beautiful circle in such natural surroundings, and not a single soul around us. We stood in the middle of that circle with our arms around each other, and for two pins I could have taken off all my clothes and made love to that wonderful man of mine! There was a passionate sort of energy there in that place of wonder, but I fear John would have thought I'd completely lost the plot! Or perhaps he wouldn’t have thought it, and I should have done. | [ Reply to This ]
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Boscawen Un's central stone (Score: 0)
by Anonymous on Tuesday, 04 June 2002 | | This is sort-of the kind of angle that an arrow could make when it reached the ground. It's a very familiar angle with standing stones... | [ Reply to This ]
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Re: Boscawen Un (Score: 0)
by Anonymous on Sunday, 09 June 2002 | Does Tom know about the possible two stone hand axes carved on the off-centre pillar?
A sighting through the largest gap in the stones from behind the leaning pillar might simply to be for defining the mid-summer sun. I imagine someone with a staff markng the sunset day by day until the staff begins its return journey - but it is only a thought! | [ Reply to This ]
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Re: Boscawen Un (Score: 0)
by Anonymous on Sunday, 09 June 2002 | Same writer as indicated the axes on the pillar.
Consider the pillar entering the ground as an axe would enter wood | [ Reply to This ]
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The search for Boscawen Un (Score: 1)
by ocifant on Thursday, 19 February 2004
(User Info | Send a Message) | This ios one of those sites that people seem to have trouble finding. Spriggans at work? It's actually very easy to find, once you know where it is. On the A30, look for the sign to Boscawen-Noon Farm, and follow the track as far as the 'no cars beyond this point' sign. Walk the rest of the way to the farm, then turn right and follow the overgrown footpath marked 'stone circle'.
There are other access points too, but that's the most straightforward approach... | [ Reply to This ]
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Re: Boscawen-un: The Sun and Moon (Score: 1)
by enkidu41 on Tuesday, 08 June 2004
(User Info | Send a Message) | Condition:
Ambience:
Access:
This circle has always been the centre of ritual activity. "Beisgawen yn Dumnonia" was named in the mediaeval Welsh triads as one of the three principal gorsedds in Britain. Much older traditions associated with the circle - probably extending as far back as its builders - surely played a significant part in the Druids adopting this circle for a gorsedd. We cannot know what those traditions were but we can see strong hints of their existence.
The circle embodies both solar and lunar aspects and male and female principals. The central leaning pillar is male and solar. Excavational evidence suggests that it was erected to lean deliberately. In any event, its phallic shape points to the direction of the midsummer sunrise whose first rays illuminate its base and the possible two carved axe-heads.
All the stones are of granite with one exception. In the SW quadrant is a blocky stone whose shape embodies the female principal. This stone is made of pure quartz and in the moonlight is quite magical appearing to twinkle and sparkle as though it were alive. The existence of a solitary quartz stone in what is otherwise a granite circle is surely no accident. Was it deliberately chosen to allow the moon goddess to manifest herself? | [ Reply to This ]
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Re: Boscawen-un: The Sun and Moon (Score: 0)
by Anonymous on Monday, 06 February 2006 | The easiest way to get to the circle is to stop at the lay-by that's about a mile East of Crows-an-Wra on the Penzance - Lands End road, the main A30. There is no need to go to Boscawenoon Farm; that would mean a longer walk.
Going from Crows-an-Wra, 1st there is a minor road turning to the right. Ignore it. 2nd, about 4/10ths of a mile further on, at the bottom of the hill, is a house or two on either side of the road. Ignore them. 3rd, about 2/10ths of a mile further on, at the top of the hill, there is a lay-by on the right, which is the South side of the road. There is a kissing gate with a white notice attached to a board, saying be careful what you leave at the stones.
Now all you have to do is to follow the paths from there to the stones. It takes about 5-10 minutes. You think, wherever is it? ....and then.... wow! All of a sudden, there it is, hidden by all that thick and high undergrowth. | [ Reply to This ]
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Re: Boscawen-un: The Sun and Moon (Score: 1)
by AngieLake on Monday, 06 February 2006
(User Info | Send a Message) | | Yes, I prefer this way too. If you're taking that path (walking SE-ish to Boscawen Un, if I remember correctly), take a detour to explore the huge rocks on the right of the path, not far from the road. As far as I can ascertain, the site is known as Creeg Tol. [I posted pics of this site on Meg P]. I believe some foot-shaped rock basins on their surface are also known locally as 'The Giant's Footprints'. (There's a circular one, too, with a nice lip sloping down towards a ledge large enough for a person to stand on - an ideal place for initiations!) From that position you can see Boscawen Un in the distance. Look down on the other side where there's a strange little circle. I'm sure this is modern, and the atmosphere down there is dreadful. I've never felt so threatened as I did when alone there. Has anyone else had a similar experience?? | [ Reply to This ]
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Re: Improved access to Boscawen-un circle (2006) (Score: 1)
by TheCaptain on Thursday, 31 August 2006
(User Info | Send a Message) | | This wonderful circle shows up beautifully in the Flash Earth view when zoomed right in. Tremendous. | [ Reply to This ]
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Improved access to Boscawen-un circle (2006) (Score: 1)
by JimChampion on Thursday, 31 August 2006
(User Info | Send a Message) | It is now much easier to get to Boscawen-un stone circle from the small layby on the A30! I managed it in the dark this week and on the new noticeboard outside the gate to the circle enclosure I found the following press release that explains what has happened...
PAROW (Penwith Access and Rights of Way) is working at Boscawen-un Stone Circle to remove the Bracken, Brambles, Gorse and Blackthorn that is spreading throughout the enclosure area. Work has already taken place to improve access to the stones by trimming back the vegetation from the definitive path, installing new Way Marking Signs and repairing the gate by the A30.
This work is being done in partnership with CASPN (Cornish Ancient Sites Protection Network) and is part funded by Cornwall Countil Council, Penwith District Council and Cornwall AONB.
The work is being carried out with an understanding of the sensitive nature of this site but if anyone would like more information or is concerned over the nature of this work please contact me on the number below.
If you would like to become involved in any of the projects being organised by PAROW and could volunteer some time to help, then please contact Chris Fry, Paths Officer - 01736 811124 or 07969603051 / Graham Ronan, Chairman - 01736 740542.
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