<< Our Photo Pages >> Spinsters' Rock - Burial Chamber or Dolmen in England in Devon

Submitted by vicky on Friday, 10 October 2003  Page Views: 22381

Neolithic and Bronze AgeSite Name: Spinsters' Rock Alternative Name: Spinster's Rock; Grinsell List A Drewsteignton 1
Country: England County: Devon Type: Burial Chamber or Dolmen
Nearest Town: Okehampton  Nearest Village: Drewsteignton
Map Ref: SX70109079  Landranger Map Number: 191
Latitude: 50.702199N  Longitude: 3.840851W
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
 3 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
 5

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rhodct visited on 28th Aug 2024 - their rating: Cond: 3 Amb: 3 Access: 5

philw visited on 6th Oct 2020 - their rating: Cond: 4 Amb: 4 Access: 4

TwinFlamesKiss visited on 1st Mar 2013 - their rating: Cond: 5 Amb: 4 Access: 5 Signposted from nearest main road. In a field with some sheep grazing. Amazing sight.

graemefield visited on 30th Jun 2012 - their rating: Cond: 5 Amb: 4 Access: 5

jeffrep visited on 21st May 2011 - their rating: Cond: 3 Amb: 4 Access: 5

avebury101 visited on 1st Aug 2003 - their rating: Cond: 4 Amb: 4 Access: 4 easy to find,wooden sign post,easy missed

cazzyjane visited - their rating: Cond: 4 Amb: 5 Access: 4

Bladup TimPrevett rldixon AngieLake JimChampion hamish TheCaptain Andy B Bolstered NickyD ArchAstro mdensham mdensham have visited here

Average ratings for this site from all visit loggers: Condition: 4 Ambience: 4 Access: 4.57

Spinsters' Rock
Spinsters' Rock submitted by Andy B : Spinsters' Rock with a rainbow (Vote or comment on this photo)
Burial Chamber (Dolmen) in Devon. The burial chamber is composed of a large capstone supported on three uprights. The tomb collapsed in 1858 and was reconstructed soon afterwards, but not exactly as it had been originally.

It was apparently erected by three spinsters before breakfast, hence the name!

Update December 2019: This dolmen is featured on the Prehistoric Dartmoor Walks (PDW) website - see their entries for the Spinsters Rock Chambered Tomb and Spinster's Rock.

The tomb is also recorded as Pastscape Monument No. 445766, as MDV8440 (Spinster's Rock, Drewsteignton) on the Devon and Dartmoor HER, and scheduled as Historic England List Entry No. 1003177 (Spinster's Rock).
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Spinsters' Rock
Spinsters' Rock submitted by rldixon : Spinsters rock with horses dont know where the donkey got to it must be camera shy ;-) taken june 2008 in Infra red (7 comments - Vote or comment on this photo)

Spinsters' Rock
Spinsters' Rock submitted by jeffrep : Spinsters' Rock Burial Chamber in Devon, England. (Vote or comment on this photo)

Spinsters' Rock
Spinsters' Rock submitted by Bladup : Spinsters' Rock. (Vote or comment on this photo)

Spinsters' Rock
Spinsters' Rock submitted by graemefield : Spinster's Rock, June 30th 2012 (Vote or comment on this photo)

Spinsters' Rock
Spinsters' Rock submitted by postman : Rain stopped play at Down tor so we came here instead. (Vote or comment on this photo)

Spinsters' Rock
Spinsters' Rock submitted by cazzyjane : Spinsters' Rock. Sadly no visable signs of the many stones that once surrounded it at the time it was first mapped.

Spinsters' Rock
Spinsters' Rock submitted by TimPrevett : Spinsters' Rock and its meadow on a warm summer day, 3rd June 2009.

Spinsters' Rock
Spinsters' Rock submitted by AngieLake : When a friend and I visited on 8th October we spent most of the afternoon here, and to begin with it was very sunny. I liked the way the underside of the capstone is lit up here. Two things NOT to do: Don't picnic, and don't feed this pony - he may bite! (see site page for more). (6 comments)

Spinsters' Rock
Spinsters' Rock submitted by Bladup : Spinsters' Rock.

Spinsters' Rock
Spinsters' Rock submitted by Bladup

Spinsters' Rock
Spinsters' Rock submitted by Bladup

Spinsters' Rock
Spinsters' Rock submitted by Bladup

Spinsters' Rock
Spinsters' Rock submitted by Bladup

Spinsters' Rock
Spinsters' Rock submitted by rldixon : The Spinsters Rock taken in InfraRed june 2008 (2 comments)

Spinsters' Rock
Spinsters' Rock submitted by cazzyjane : Spinsters' Rock. A joy to see when you first enter the field!

Spinsters' Rock
Spinsters' Rock submitted by cazzyjane : An impressive dolmen on a sunny September day.

Spinsters' Rock
Spinsters' Rock submitted by TimPrevett : Spinsters' Rock and its meadow on a warm summer day, 3rd June 2009.

Spinsters' Rock
Spinsters' Rock submitted by TimPrevett

Spinsters' Rock
Spinsters' Rock submitted by TimPrevett (2 comments)

Spinsters' Rock
Spinsters' Rock submitted by TimPrevett

Spinsters' Rock
Spinsters' Rock submitted by AngieLake : Outside view of eastern support stone.

Spinsters' Rock
Spinsters' Rock submitted by JohnF : Spinsters Rock near Chagford shot from grass level. I had to share this one with sheep and even a wedding photographer - it wasn't me who moved the sheep out from underneath :-)

Spinsters' Rock
Spinsters' Rock submitted by Bladup : Spinsters' Rock.

Spinsters' Rock
Spinsters' Rock submitted by Bladup

Spinsters' Rock
Spinsters' Rock submitted by Bladup : Spinsters' Rock. One of the iron bars put though the bottom of all the uprights (yes really) for extra support when it was restored after falling in 1862 is now showing, The ground level is clearly going down, probably because of animal and human feet.

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Nearby sites listing. In the following links * = Image available
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"Spinsters' Rock" | Login/Create an Account | 21 News and Comments
  
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Re: Spinsters' Rock's Star-gazing history? by AngieLake on Saturday, 05 February 2011
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I picked up a beautiful little greeting card the other day, with a painting of Spinster's Rock silhouetted against a full moon, and a barn owl in flight.
It was painted by Rachel Jennings:
http://www.racheljennings.org.uk and had an interesting note on the back.
[Quote]:
"Spinster's Rock'
Spinster's Rock, a neolithic tomb near Drewsteignton, was called 'Lle Yspiennwr rhongoa' by the Celts, a name which translates as 'the open star-gazing place'."

That's fascinating and, if accurate, shows how the Celtic name would have gradually, over time, transmuted into the present pronunciation.
'The open star-gazing place' sounds much more romantic!
[ Reply to This ]

Re: Spinsters' Rock Street View by Pocolen on Wednesday, 22 December 2010
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Greetings from the Colonies (Port Coquitlam B. C.)

Mum was from Barrow-in-Furness and Dad hailed from the Hackey area of London. their version went like this...

My mother had a donkey she kept it in the yard
One day in the winter it was snowing hard
Mother said the donkey would chilly in the storm
Bring him in the parlour and let him have a warm
He came in and bit my mother's ear
Took it for a cabbage leaf and bit the chandelier
Out went the lights but when there came a light again
Donkey had another bite again
Mother went to get the fork to stick it in the ass
She stuck in my father's bum and out went the gas.

I would love to hear a recording of this song. Mom said she altered some of the words for us kids but would not say which words. I'm sure someone out there has the true lyrics.

Just out of interest, on Cream's album Disreali Gears their is a good version of Mother's Lament. Also on Emerson Lake and Palmer's album Brain Salad Surgery there is a version of Jerusalem.

I was playing Jerusalem one Saturday when they came to visit and shocked the hell out of me when they both started sing to the recording. That started a long account of school days in the 30's in Britain.

Pocolen

[ Reply to This ]
    Re: Spinsters' Rock Street View by Anonymous on Saturday, 17 August 2013
    My father born in 1931 taught me this song when I was little. Dad is 82 now . I am 48 and we teach it to my kids. I have never met anyone who has know it !!!
    [ Reply to This ]

Re: Spinsters' Rock Street View by Anonymous on Tuesday, 16 November 2010
Yes, the song I know is a combination of the two versions described:

Once we had a donkey and we kept him in the yard
One day in the winter it was snowing hard
Mother said the donkey must be chilly in the storm
Bring him in the parlour - let him have a warm
He came in, bit me father's ear
Took it for a cauliflower and kicked the chandelier
Out went the gas - then it came alight again - the donkey took a bite again
Mother took a knife to stick it in the ass
She stuck it in me father's head and out went the gas!

My Mum was born 1920 and knew it from her childhood - very probably an old music hall song. Great isn't it?

Ann
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Spinsters' Rock Street View by Andy B on Friday, 02 April 2010
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Re: Spinsters' Rock by Anonymous on Friday, 04 July 2008
I think the "we had a donkey" thing was Victoria Music Hall and our version is a combination of the two given on this website really - but would suggest it went roughly as follows:-
We had a donkey, kept it in the yard
One day in Winter, it was snowing hard
Mother said the donkey must be chilly in the storm
Bring it in the kitchen - let it have a warm
It came in, bit father's ear - took it for a cabbage stalk -
and kicked the chandelier
Out went the gas, then it came alight again
Poor father's head - donkey took a bite again
Mother took a knife, for to stick it in the ass
Stuck it in me father's head and out went the gas
Sue Millward
[ Reply to This ]
    Re: Spinsters' Rock by Anonymous on Monday, 18 February 2013
    That's how I remember it.
    [ Reply to This ]

Re: Spinsters' Rock by Brutus on Tuesday, 01 July 2008
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When I visited on 15th June 2008, there were two bay horses in the field. They seem to like standing under the capstone and followed me around while I tried to take photos. They were quite a nuisance so I think people have obviousy been feeding them.
[ Reply to This ]

Re: Spinsters' Rock by Anonymous on Sunday, 20 April 2008
I think this song should go on some sort of endangered list! My grandparents used to sing it when I was little and I thought I'd search for it on the web - this is the only match I could find! It definitely pre-dates Rutland Weekend TV and Monty Python as my grandparents never watched either and I probably first heard it in about 1965. My dad reckons it's probably an old Music Hall song. The version I know is slightly different:-

Once we had a donkey and we kept it in the yard
One day in the winter it was snowing hard
Mother said it must be getting chilly in the storm
Bring it in the parlour and let it have a warm
It came in - bit me father's ear
Took it for a cabbage leaf and broke the chandelier
Out went the gas – then it came alight again
At father's ear the donkey took a bite again
Mother got a fork to stick it in the ass
She stuck it in poor father's head and out went the gas.

John O
[ Reply to This ]
    Re: Spinsters' Rock by TheCaptain on Tuesday, 22 April 2008
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    Excellent. Many thanks for this variation John O - and confirmation that the song is probably much older than archaeological records can prove....
    [ Reply to This ]
    Re: Spinsters' Rock by Anonymous on Tuesday, 03 February 2009
    My mother used to sing to me the poem about the donkey hen I was about 7 in 1939. She said she got it from her brother who in turn got it from a music hall. That takes it back to about 1920 if not before
    Ted R
    [ Reply to This ]
    Re: Spinsters' Rock by Anonymous on Monday, 29 June 2009
    Yeah I knew one woman who would sing this in the 1970s in a club in biringham when she had had enough to drink. Lynn, if you ever read this, remember them days? More or less the same words but more brummy. she had had it handed down in the black country so it probably came from there somewhere.
    Tony
    [ Reply to This ]

Re: Spinsters' Rock by Andy B on Monday, 08 October 2007
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Yes that was a very bizarre co-incidence about the donkey. I've deleted the other comment so everyone else will have to just imagine what we are on about that involves donkeys :-)
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    Re: Donkeys by TheCaptain on Monday, 08 October 2007
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    Once we had a donkey, kept him in the yard....
    One day in the winter, it was snowing hard.
    Mother said the donkey must be cold out in the yard,
    Bring him in the kitchen, let him have a warm.....
    2,3,4.
    In came the donkey, bit me fathers ear,
    took it for a cabbage leaf, and broke the chandelier.
    Mother took a knofe, for to stick it in the ass,
    Stuck it in me fathers head, and out went the gas.
    Eeeeeeh hawwwww.
    Just couldn't resist that.
    [ Reply to This ]
      Re: Donkeys by bat400 on Tuesday, 09 October 2007
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      Captain -- That's poetry. Is it safe to assume that this is either a UK jump rope song, or a hand clapping "Merry-Mac"?
      [ Reply to This ]
      Re: Donkeys by TheCaptain on Tuesday, 09 October 2007
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      aaargh, I missed a bit. insert between lines 6 & 7

      Out went the gas, then it came alight again.
      Poor fathers head, donkey took a bite again.

      What an Ass.

      I have known and loved this since i was little, and it is to this day sung at get togethers of me and mates from Donkeys years ago.

      I always thought it to be from Neil Innes or Monty Python, but I have now found with the wonders of t'interweb, that it is a little song that everyone thinks is by Neil Innes (featured on Rutland Weekend Television), but isn't, and is probably a traditional song.

      http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JjdpnD4CQ_I
      [ Reply to This ]
      Re: Donkeys by Anonymous on Sunday, 07 March 2010
      Just found this. I don't know anyone else who knows it and my Mum sang it as she beat the batter for Yorkshire pud on Sundays.

      Father bought a donkey, kept it in the yard
      One winter's night it was snowing very hard
      Mother said to Father 'donkey must be cold
      bring him in the parlour, let him have a warm'
      In came donkey, saw Father's ear
      Took it for a cabbage leaf and kicked the chandelier

      BANG!

      Out went the gas, when it came alight again
      At Father's ear donkey took a bite again
      Mother took a fork to stick it in the Ass
      Stuck it into Father's ear and out went the gas

      BANG!
      [ Reply to This ]

Re: Spinsters' Rock by AngieLake on Monday, 08 October 2007
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Please note when visiting Spinster's Rock, not to feed the horses/ponies or the donkey. Apparently the brown horse/pony? can bite and the owner is concerned that by people feeding them apples, etc, he may become more prone to nipping people. Also the white horse/pony? is poorly at the moment, so best left alone.
My friend and I were smitten [not bitten!] by the donkey. He's (she's?) a real beaut. Very nosey though, couldn't keep its nose out of my pal's bag!
We made the mistake of taking folding chairs into the field with a picnic lunch while studying the dolmen, but the owner came along and pointed out that it isn't a picnic area.... just a site where people are allowed to visit to see the dolmen.
There is quite adequate parking for about 4 or 5 cars outside, but the lanes are very narrow around here.
[ Reply to This ]
    Re: Spinsters' Rock by TimPrevett on Saturday, 29 May 2010
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    I had the field to myself - only wildlife some crows striding through th ebuttercups & daisies. Sat & had a brief nibble under the dolmen for a while. Was very peaceful and very warm.
    [ Reply to This ]

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