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MITCHELLS FOLD STONE CIRCLE

ALTERNATIVE NAME:

MADGES PINFOLD, MEDJICES FOLD

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DESCRIPTION

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An Early Bronze Age (circa 2000 BC) stone circle situated in a high saddle between Stapeley Hill to the north and Corndon Hill to the south. It comprises 15 stones arranged to form a rough circle with dimensions of 30 metres northwest/southeast by 27 metres northeast/southwest. One side is obviously flattened, probably deliberately, as this feature is common in other stone circles. The dolerite stones are believed to have been brought from Stapeley Hill to the northwest and are of a uniform geology. The majority protrude through the turf to an average height of 0.4 metres; two stones lie recumbent while three stones are appreciably taller than the rest standing to heights of 0.9 metres, 1.4 metres and 1.7 metres. The upstanding remains of this stone circle were mapped from aerial photographs. The original central stone is now hidden below ground. An outlying stone standing 0.7 metres high on a small prominence lies to the southeast. Various banks and depressions are also visible within and outside the circle. There is also evidence for a later field system, probably of early medieval date, in the form of ridge and furrow.

Folklore tells of a magic cow that provided milk for all, until one day a witch drained her dry. The cow vanished forthwith, and according to the legend, the witch was turned into the central stone and the circle erected to keep her in.

The stones are likely to have been erected by farming community for a ritual or religious purpose. They are frequently associated with burial sites, and the remains of a cairn (burial mound) lie immediately to the southeast. Two other stone circles are nearby at Hoarstones and Whetstones, and a prehistoric axe making centre operated at Cwm Mawr. Stone axe hammers were made there and have been found as far away as Land's End, Cornwall. The circle is now in the care of English Heritage as one of fewer than 10 such monuments nationwide.

DETAIL

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MORE INFORMATION & SOURCES

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(SO 30439837) Mitchell's Fold (NAT) Stone Circle (NR). (1)

A Bronze Age stone circle; 85ft diam. Fifteen stones remain; the largest is about 6ft high. (2)

A Bronze Age circle of stones, diameter 31m NW-SE by 27m transversely situated upon a moorland ridge top. Fourteen stones remain visible, standing to an average height of 0.4m, except for three, 0.9m, 1.4m and the highest, 1.7m in height, see photographs.

Two stones are recumbent. Circle resurveyed at 1:2500. (3)

SO 304 983: Mitchells Fold stone circle. Scheduled: Salop 10. (4)(7)

SO304983. Mitchell's Fold stone circle, Chirbury. Bronze Age stone circle with extensive views and 16 visible upright stones. (5)

Brief description with plan. (6)

Summary description with references included in gazetteer of stone circles. (8)

The upstanding stones of the Bronze Age stone circle known as Mitchell's Fold (described above) were seen on aerial photographs at SO 3041 9837. The stone circle is surrounded by and cut through by cultivation ridges which have been dated to the Medieval period. The ridges run between the stones and were originally thought to pre-date the stone circle. However, field survey work has now dated the rig to the Medieval period and suggest the cultivation ridges were threaded between the stones. These features were mapped at 1:10,000 scale for the RCHME: Marches Uplands Mapping Project. (10-11)

In June 1994 the circle was damaged: the two tallest stones were pushed over and lay recumbent next to their sockets. English Heritage subsequently recorded the extent of the damage prior to re-erection of the stones. The excavation results suggested that Stone 8 had been erected/re-erected in its current position in the 19th/20th century, whilst Stone 1 had been in position for considerably longer, and may never have been disturbed since its original erection. Both stone sockets had sprigs of rosehip in them, and Stone 8 also contained a sprig of Rosemary. A stone/cobble surface survived to the south-east of the stones. In the case of Stone 8 this was fairly recent. The soil in both sockets was very disturbed, and for Stone 8 was fairly modern. There was no evidence for buried soil horizons. Stone 1's socket was almost the same size as the stone and so had packing around the top of the socket only. Stone 8 was set in a large square pit with a lot of packing stones, and a sherd of 19th/20th century pottery. (12)

Additional reference. (13)

SOURCE TEXT

( 1) Ordnance Survey Map (Scale / Date)

OS 6" 1964

( 2) General reference

DoE. 1967. Regional Guide to Ancient Monuments, 3, 14, 79

( 3) Field Investigators Comments

F1 ASP 26-NOV-73

( 4) English Heritage 1987 County list of Scheduled Ancient Monuments : December 1987

Shropshire Page(s)16

(5) Barry M Marsden 1970 Discovering regional archaeology : central England

Shire discovering series Page(s)52

(6) by A Thom and A S Thoms; collated, with archaeological notes by A Burl 1980 Megalithic rings : plans and data for 229 monuments in Britain

BAR British series1 (1974) - 81 Page(s)24-5

(7) English Heritage 1995 County list of Scheduled Monuments : March 1994

Shropshire Page(s)16

(8) by John Barnatt 1989 Stone circles of Britain : taxonomic and distributional analyses and a catalogue of sites in England, Scotland and Wales

BAR British series1 (1974) - 215 (i-ii) Page(s)386-7

(9) Scheduled Monument Notification

14-DEC-1994

(10) Aerial photograph

NMR SO 3098/9 30-JAN-1986

(11) Aerial photograph

NMR SO 3098/10, 14-16 30-OCT-1988

(12) Centre for Archaeology Report series

'Mitchells Fold stone circle, Shropshire: the archaeological recording and repair of the monument following damage', by F Blore, 1995

(13) English Heritage 2006 Heritage Unlocked: Guide to free sites in the Midlands

Page(s)78-9

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Description

MITCHELLS FOLD STANDING STONE AND CAIRN
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Situated to the south east of Mitchell's Fold stone circle, 90 metres from its centre, there is an outlying standing stone set on a small prominence. ...

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Bronze Age stone circle comprising 37 stones (formerly 38) and one central stone. Two mounds of uncertain date to the north. The upstanding remains o...

MITCHELLS FOLD CAIRN
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The earthwork remains of a Bronze Age cairn visible on the ground and also mapped from aerial photographs.

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