English Heritage and British Museum commission study into illegal metal detecting
English Heritage and the British Museum are so alarmed they have commissioned a £100,000 study into the practice. It could lead to new legislation to combat offenders.
Lord Bruce-Lockhart to be new English Heritage Chairman
DEPARTMENT FOR CULTURE, MEDIA AND SPORT News Release (582007) issued by The Government News Network on 24 May 2007
Lord Bruce-Lockhart has been appointed Chair of English Heritage, the Government's statutory advisor on the historic environment, Culture Secretary Tessa... continues...
Some information that may be of use to TMA-ers looking at OS maps of England and Wales, from "Field Archaeology - Some Notes For Beginners Issued by the Ordnance Survey" (1963 - Fourth edition), chapter entitled "Tumuli":
"Today the term tumulus is reserved for those earthen mounds either known or presumed to be covering burials. Formerly a class of larger mounds, now known to belong to early medieval castles also received this name in error ..., but now are given their correct technical description or are described as 'Mound' in the appropriate type. All piles of stones are called cairns whether their funerary character is known or not, but the use of an 'antiquity' type will mean that the Survey believes it to be sepulchral. In some very lofty situations it will be obvious that they are not graves. Where a mound has a local name which clearly indicates the belief that it is a burial place the descriptive name tumulus is not added."
The earthwork in Hailes Wood is on a spur of the Cotswold escarpment with steep natural slopes to the west, and more gentle slopes to N and S. The ground rises steadily to the east, and on this side the defence is strongest with a bank up to 2.3m in height above a ditch which is 1.5m deep. On the south side a ditch and slight outer bank is in use as a path, except where it turns at the SW corner to end on the natural slope. The SW approach is also defended by two additional banks between the outer ditch and the level area above it, which has been cut off from the rest of the interior by a ditch up to 1.8m deep. The total area enclosed is 1 1/2-2 acres. Modern paths run through the earthwork, but the entrance near the SE corner may be original.
The Hellstone (Dolmen / Quoit / Cromlech) — Fieldnotes
The best place to park for this site is the layby by the Farm on Portisham Hill, next to the farm at SY601879. The path leading from the style at the layby across the field will lead you directly to the Hellstone. After the first field you need to walk on the other side of the hedge, and then change back again for the third field to be on the correct side for the style and to avoid the electric fence.
This is all going to change soon though as I met the farmer who told me they are soon to change the path leading to the Hellstone.
This lay by is also the perfect place to leave the car to walk to Hampton Down opposite, and just back along The Valley of the Stones and if you have time why not continue on past the valley of the Stones off Coombe Road and then take the right hand turn onto Bishop's Road. The track to The Grey Mare and her Colts and Kingston Russell is just off another right turn (the next one you come to on Bishops Road) onto a farm track.