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<< Our Photo Pages >> Little Balsmith - Standing Stone (Menhir) in Scotland in Dumfries and Galloway

Submitted by cosmic on Saturday, 23 October 2004  Page Views: 6931

Neolithic and Bronze AgeSite Name: Little Balsmith Alternative Name: Stairfield stone
Country: Scotland County: Dumfries and Galloway Type: Standing Stone (Menhir)
 Nearest Village: Whithorn
Map Ref: NX4670539812  Landranger Map Number: 83
Latitude: 54.729851N  Longitude: 4.382124W
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
4 Ambience:
5Superb
4Good
3Ordinary
2Not Good
1Awful
0No data.
3 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.
5 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
4

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I have visited· I would like to visit

Anne T visited on 18th Jun 2019 - their rating: Cond: 3 Amb: 4 Access: 5 Little Balsmith/Stairfield Standing Stone: I was very reluctant to tear myself away from Whithorn Museum and Priory, but with it closing at 5pm, we didn’t really have a choice. I popped back into the visitor centre to buy some postcards, then we headed off down the street to buy an Italian Ice Cream, complete with chocolate flake – delicious! This standing stone is not far out of Whithorn; take the road which heads east past the school, the B7063, and continue for 2.7km. We had a very strange encounter driving towards the stone, as we came across a car parked across a farm entrance, with one man sprawled across the bonnet with his hands behind his head, the other was leaning up against the passenger side of the car. There was something really odd about this car – it was missing its rear driver side wheel! We waved at each other as we drove past – they didn’t flag us down and ask for help. On the way back, another car had joined them and the men were talking animatedly. Wonder what had happened for them to lose the wheel. The standing stone is in a flat plane here, with Wigtown Bay to the east. The road running past the stone continues to the Isle of Whithorn. Again, this stone is ‘a big boy’. Luckily the crop in the field had just been harvested, so I went in to get some photographs from all sides of the stone.

SolarMegalith visited on 22nd Sep 2016 - their rating: Cond: 4 Amb: 3 Access: 5



Average ratings for this site from all visit loggers: Condition: 3.5 Ambience: 3.5 Access: 5

Little Balsmith
Little Balsmith submitted by cosmic : View fromup farm road to West (Vote or comment on this photo)
Standing Stone in Dumfries

This single stone can be found NNE of a property called Stairfield at NX46703980. It is actually in the drystone wall but towers above it to the south of the Whithorn to Isle of Whithorn road. This stone is referred to as Little Balsmith on Canmore ID 63067.

The Canmore entry for both 1911 and 1973 reads: "There is a standing stone on the W side of the Whithorn - Portyerrock road, c. 80' SE of the entrance to Little Balsmith farm. Standing 7'6" high, it is trapezoidal in section, measuring 2'6" on three sides and 3' on the fourth."
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Little Balsmith
Little Balsmith submitted by Anne T : Standing just to the north west of this stone looking along the line of the dry stone wall, over the stone, with the sea of Wigtown Bay just visible as a darker blue line running across the centre of the photo. (Vote or comment on this photo)

Little Balsmith
Little Balsmith submitted by Anne T : Standing in the middle of the B7063 (thankfully not busy!) looking across the north eastern face of this standing stone. Canmore says it is trapezoidal in section, with three sides measuring 2ft 6ins, the other 3ft across. (Vote or comment on this photo)

Little Balsmith
Little Balsmith submitted by Anne T : Standing just to the NW of the standing stone, looking along the line of the drystone wall across this 7ft 6ins tall standing stone. It appears to change shape quite dramatically, depending on what angle you look at it from. This must be its broadest side at just under 1m across. (Vote or comment on this photo)

Little Balsmith
Little Balsmith submitted by Anne T : The standing stone as seen from just to its south from inside the field. (Vote or comment on this photo)

Little Balsmith
Little Balsmith submitted by Anne T : First view of the Little Balsmith or Stairfield Standing Stone, driving east down the B7063. The stone is 2.7km east of Whithorn and within sight of Wigtown Bay. (Vote or comment on this photo)

Little Balsmith
Little Balsmith submitted by SolarMegalith : Little Balsmith standing stone and view towards the coast (photo taken on September 2016).

Little Balsmith
Little Balsmith submitted by SolarMegalith : Little Balsmith standing stone - view from the SE (photo taken on September 2016).

Little Balsmith
Little Balsmith submitted by SolarMegalith : Little Balsmith standing stone near the local road (photo taken on September 2016).

Little Balsmith
Little Balsmith submitted by cosmic : View along the wall edge

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Nearby sites listing. In the following links * = Image available
 2.0km NW 325° St Kiaran's Well (Chapelheron) Holy Well or Sacred Spring (NX456415)
 2.3km W 280° Whithorn Museum* Museum (NX44494028)
 2.3km W 278° Peter Hill Roundhouse (Whithorn)* Ancient Village or Settlement (NX4442440212)
 3.2km S 182° Leakin Hill Cup and Rings Rock Art (NX465366)
 3.5km S 186° Drummoral Hillfort (NX462363)
 3.8km W 270° Rispain Camp* Ancient Village or Settlement (NX4293039930)
 4.0km SSE 159° Isle Head* Promontory Fort / Cliff Castle (NX48033605)
 5.9km SSW 196° Castle Feather Promontory Fort / Cliff Castle (NX449342)
 5.9km SW 227° St Ninian's Cave (Isle of Whithorn)* Early Christian Sculptured Stone (NX42243595)
 5.9km N 349° Broughton Mains* Rock Art (NX45814565)
 6.5km WSW 246° Glasserton Mains* Rock Art (NX40613737)
 7.4km WSW 248° Laggan Camp* Hillfort (NX3976437252)
 7.8km WNW 301° White Loch. Crannog (NX40174404)
 8.7km NW 323° Culnoag* Rock Art (NX41744693)
 9.0km NW 322° Doon Hill Ancient Village or Settlement (NX414471)
 9.3km NW 317° Dowalton Crannogs* Crannog (NX40614681)
 9.3km NNW 333° Claunch Cup and Ring 2 Rock Art (NX427482)
 9.3km W 280° Blairbuy 5* Rock Art (NX37594175)
 9.3km NNW 335° Claunch Stone Standing Stone (Menhir) (NX430484)
 9.4km NNW 334° Claunch Cup and Ring 1* Rock Art (NX42904845)
 9.5km W 281° Fell of Barhullion* Hillfort (NX37454188)
 9.5km W 276° Blairbuy 2* Rock Art (NX37284117)
 9.6km WNW 283° Blairbuy 3* Rock Art (NX37464233)
 9.7km W 277° Blairbuy 1* Rock Art (NX371413)
 9.8km W 269° Knock 5* Carving (NX36903995)
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Re: Stairfield stone - Street View by kelpie on Wednesday, 21 April 2010
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