Amberguy
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Possible Unmarked Circle? Derbyshire, Birchen Edge
Apr 09, 2013, 11:39
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Hi, I was out and about at the weekend at Birchen Edge (Robin Hood, near Baslow, Derbyshire) site of a cairnfield and Nelsons Monument and the Three Ships with my camera.
I was on the edge and taking pictures and focused on what appeared to be a ruined farm building, nothing special about that in Derbyshire, but when i got home and looked at the picture full size it showed what appears to be an unmarked stone circle against a high stone wall.
My camera has quite a powerful zoom and it cant be seen with the naked eye and worse it cant be seen when down from Birchen Edge.
It can be seen (just) on Google Maps/Earth but it isnt shown on any OS maps although nearby features like the Cat Stones, Three Men, cairns, Nelson Monument are shown. English Heritage doesnt have the site marked either.
Grid Ref SK 27667 72860 or 53.252037, -1.5867895
My picture of it is seen here http://www.flickr.com/photos/79289196@N05/8634497928/in/photostream as I'm not sure how to post a picture on this site. Any help appreciated.
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Amberguy
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Re: Possible Unmarked Circle? Derbyshire, Birchen Edge
Apr 09, 2013, 12:05
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Google Earth Coordinates: 53°15'7.28"N 1°35'12.36"W
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Rhiannon
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Re: Possible Unmarked Circle? Derbyshire, Birchen Edge
Apr 09, 2013, 12:08
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I popped your grid reference into the Heritage Gateway and it came up with this
http://www.heritagegateway.org.uk/Gateway/Results_Single.aspx?uid=MDR4165&resourceID=1023
which sounds like it could be your circle?
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Amberguy
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Re: Possible Unmarked Circle? Derbyshire, Birchen Edge
Apr 09, 2013, 12:21
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Fraid not, the enclosure you suggest it a few fields away the other side of Moorside Farm, the site I photographed is closer to Birchen Edge.
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thesweetcheat
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Re: Possible Unmarked Circle? Derbyshire, Birchen Edge
Apr 09, 2013, 12:28
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Hi Amberguy,
From your pic, the stones look quite worked (they're very flat-topped and angular) and the arrangement doesn't appear circular. Do you think it could be remains of an old wall or farm shed, byre, etc?
tsc
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Rhiannon
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Re: Possible Unmarked Circle? Derbyshire, Birchen Edge
Apr 09, 2013, 12:29
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Oh yes, the grid refs a bit different.
How big do you think it is across from one side to the other though, it only looks like about 2 or 3 metres?
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Amberguy
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Re: Possible Unmarked Circle? Derbyshire, Birchen Edge
Apr 09, 2013, 12:51
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That was what i first thought but I've not come across any Derbyshire old barns or farm buildings constructed like that, and Ive seen a few, so the only other thing I can come up with is a Roman hypocaust or something medieval like dog kennels? Its obviously old, but how old?
I would guess it measure about 15ft across (5 metres) but its hard to tell. The site has with a few recumbent stones laying around as well.
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thesweetcheat
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Re: Possible Unmarked Circle? Derbyshire, Birchen Edge
Apr 09, 2013, 12:56
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Yes, the recumbents show up well in the picture.
It looks too modern to be a stone circle, to be honest, although it is clearly something isn't it?
Also, that area of the Peaks has been pretty extensively mapped and investigated over the years, so it would seem a bit to obvious for it to have been missed.
Be interesting to see if any old large scale maps (25") from the late 1800s/early 20th century show it any different before it fell down?
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juamei
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Re: Possible Unmarked Circle? Derbyshire, Birchen Edge
Apr 09, 2013, 13:02
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I agree, the stones look too worked to be prehistoric, plus the stone wall and the building nearby suggest something contemporary with them. No idea what though...
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Amberguy
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Re: Possible Unmarked Circle? Derbyshire, Birchen Edge
Apr 09, 2013, 13:03
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Ive checked, but found nothing on any old maps so far. My usual port of call for these sort of things is
http://list.english-heritage.org.uk/mapsearch.aspx
and then old map sites.
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