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<< Our Photo Pages >> Great Tosson Cairn - Cairn in England in Northumberland

Submitted by vagabondnma on Thursday, 23 August 2007  Page Views: 12720

Neolithic and Bronze AgeSite Name: Great Tosson Cairn Alternative Name: Simonside Hill Cairn
Country: England
NOTE: This site is 0.4 km away from the location you searched for.
County: Northumberland Type: Cairn
Nearest Town: Rothbury  Nearest Village: Great Tosson
Map Ref: NZ026999
Latitude: 55.293209N  Longitude: 1.960603W
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
 2 Ambience:
5Superb
4Good
3Ordinary
2Not Good
1Awful
0No data.
 4 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.
 4 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

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Great Tosson Cairn
Great Tosson Cairn submitted by vagabondnma : Great Tosson Cairn near Rothbury on the Simonside Hills. Looks better than the photo would make you believe. (Vote or comment on this photo)
Cairn in Northumberland. Near the Simonside hills, a ruined or collapsed cairn with a large ringed bank still intact. The centre has possibly collapsed through digging, the hole in the centre is very deep.

The picture does not do it justice partly due to the terrain and heather! It is just off the main footpath (about 15 metres off the bend) through the plantation forest - a nice walk from the car park. There are other cairns nearby and a magnificent cave in a very odd looking rocky outcrop.

Note: Volunteers to restore ancient monuments on Simonside, Aug 30th, see comment
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Great Tosson Cairn
Great Tosson Cairn submitted by durhamnature : Urns from the cairn, George Tate's History of Alnwick. (Vote or comment on this photo)

Great Tosson Cairn
Great Tosson Cairn submitted by durhamnature : Drawing of a skull and iron artifact taken from this cairn in 19th C. From George Tate's History of Alnwick, via Archive.org (Vote or comment on this photo)

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

Nearby Images from Geograph Britain and Ireland:
NZ0299 : Little Church Rock by James Gilbert
by James Gilbert
©2009(licence)
NZ0299 : Cist below Simonside by Mike Quinn
by Mike Quinn
©2017(licence)
NZ0299 : Track through Simonside Forest by Anthony Foster
by Anthony Foster
©2014(licence)
NZ0299 : A winter wonderland in Simonside forest by John Watson
by John Watson
©2009(licence)
NZ0299 : Path and track junction, Simonside Forest by Andrew Curtis
by Andrew Curtis
©2010(licence)

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Nearby sites listing. In the following links * = Image available
 544m ENE 76° Great Tosson Enclosure* Ancient Village or Settlement (NU03130003)
 644m NNW 336° Tosson Burgh* Hillfort (NU02340049)
 765m SSW 200° Cambo Bridle road* Ancient Trackway (NZ02349918)
 1.2km SW 230° Ravensheugh Cairn* Cairn (NZ0169099150)
 1.2km S 190° Simonside Cairn 2* Cairn (NZ02409871)
 1.4km S 175° Simonside Cairn 1* Cairn (NZ0271098520)
 1.4km W 278° Simonside Moor Rock Art (NU0120000100)
 1.6km SSE 166° Old Stell Crag* Rock Outcrop (NZ0297498372)
 1.6km SW 226° Ravenshaugh Main Stone* Natural Stone / Erratic / Other Natural Feature (NZ0144598783)
 1.7km SE 142° Dove Crag* Rock Outcrop (NZ0367898540)
 1.8km SE 141° Dove Crag Cairn* Cairn (NZ0372898523)
 2.3km SE 124° Spy Law Beacon Cairn* Cairn (NZ04529859)
 2.4km NE 42° Westcliffe Modern Circle* Modern Stone Circle etc (NU0422301673)
 2.4km ESE 111° West Lordenshaw (Birky Hill) N03 Rock Art (NZ0487999051)
 2.4km NE 41° Westcliffe House N02 Rock Art (NU0419801743)
 2.4km NE 42° Westcliffe House N01 Rock Art (NU0423501715)
 2.4km NNE 26° West Hills 2 Rock Art (NU0367702093)
 2.4km NE 42° Westcliffe House b Rock Art (NU0423001730)
 2.5km NE 42° Westcliffe House a* Rock Art (NU0423601730)
 2.5km ESE 121° Thompson's Rock* Holed Stone (NZ0475098632)
 2.5km NNE 29° West Hills Camp* Hillfort (NU0380102085)
 2.5km NNE 29° Westhills Camp (Rock Art) Rock Art (NU038021)
 2.5km ESE 108° Birky Hill 1c* Rock Art (NZ0500799122)
 2.5km ESE 108° Birky Hill 1b* Rock Art (NZ0500899118)
 2.5km ESE 108° Birky Hill 1a* Rock Art (NZ0501099119)
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"Great Tosson Cairn" | 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.
Summer Solstice Stomp, Simonside, Rothbury Northumberland by Andy B on Thursday, 19 June 2008
(User Info | Send a Message)
Summer Solstice Stomp

Experience breathtaking views of the Cheviot Hills and Coquetdale from the top of mysterious Simonside Hill at dusk on the longest day. Please bring warm clothing, waterproofs and walking boots. Meet at the Forestry Commission car park, Simonside (Grid Ref: NZ 037997)

Type of Event:
recreational, active, wildlife/nature and guided
Date:
Saturday June 21 2008

Telephone booking is essential for this event
Time:
7pm-9.30pm
Age Group:
8 yrs and over
Cost of Event:
£5 adults, £3 concs, £12 family of four
Meeting Place:
Simonside Car Park
Clothing Required:
Warm clothing, waterproofs and walking boots
Booking Required:
01207 542231
Dogs Allowed:
No
Contact:
Kielder Castle

01434 250209
e-mail: [email protected]
[ Reply to This ]

Re: Volunteers to restore ancient monuments on Simonside by Anonymous on Sunday, 26 August 2007
I happy to help, but what time do I have to be there? Or when does the work start?
[ Reply to This ]

Volunteers to restore ancient monuments on Simonside by Andy B on Thursday, 23 August 2007
(User Info | Send a Message)

Walkers are asked: “Please stop taking stone for walking cairns.”

Northumberland National Park archaeologists, rangers and volunteers from Coquetdale Community Archaeology Group are taking part in a major conservation effort to restore the ancient monuments of the Simonside Hills which have been damaged by enthusiastic walkers. The work will take place on Thursday 30th August 2007.

The high sandstone ridge of the Simonside Hills is a place of legend and myth and the hills have been a magnet for antiquarians and archaeologists for over a century. On the open moorland and hidden in the modern forestry areas are burial cairns, carved stones and ancient pathways. In more recent times the ancient tracks known as ‘hollow ways’ were used by cattle drovers, rustlers and smugglers and these same paths now make it possible to explore the area.

This mystical range provides some of the most popular walking for visitors to the National Park, which puts stresses and strains on the natural and historical heritage. Now, the ongoing work by the National Park to prevent erosion along rights of way is being supplemented by a major effort to restore some of the County’s most important prehistoric archaeology.

Project leader, Elanor Johnson said: “Walkers, keen to mark their day by adding to a modern cairn, often don’t realize that the source of the stone is actually an ancient burial cairn, dwelling or hillfort wall. We will use this important volunteer day to put stones back in their original positions and preserve Coquet Valley monuments for future generations.

“We’d also like to take this opportunity to ask walkers not to take stone to make walking cairns as we know they would not dream of picking wildflowers, because we need to protect the historic and cultural heritage of the area as well as our natural heritage. Northumberland and the National Park have some of the best archaeological sites in the country and we’re sure everyone wants to keep it that way.”
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