Well done to the children in Year 2 for the interest and enthusiasm they showed during our visits to the Ridgeway today. We went to a number of sites of local archaeological importance.
Firstly we went to the Culliford Tree Barrow. This is an ancient Bronze-age Barrow that was also used as a burial place for the Anglo-Saxons about 1000 years ago. It is likely to have been around here that the Anglo-Saxons of the local area gathered for meetings and for special events (like deciding what to do with 54 captured Viking warriors, for example). It was thought to be a place of magic! The ancient people believed that faeries lived inside and that music could be heard coming from the ground! (We didn't hear any though).
We also went to the ancient bank Barrow further along the field.
Of course, we had to go to the site of the "Viking Massacre" that we have been learning about. Although there is not really anything to see (except the new road), it was interesting to stand in the place where such a gruesome event in our local history took place!
Finally, thanks to Hazel from Maiden Castle Farm, we were able to go onto the Lanceborough Barrow. This is the nearest barrow to our school (to the right of Maiden Castle as you look from the road) and feels impressively high once you've climbed to the top! The first group were lucky enough to see two hares dashing across the field. - My type of Earth Magic!
An extra big “Thank you!” goes to Steve Wallis (county archaeologist) who gave us such
interesting lessons in the classroom yesterday and who came with us on the visits today.
DM
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