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Thursday, 13 June 2019

Pentre Ifan


Wales: Not far from the Iron Age village (see previous posts) lies Pentre Ifan, a huge dolmen structure dated to around 3500 BC. Weighing something like 16 tonnes, the massive capstone is balanced on the tips of three other stones, about 2.5m high. There are three other standing stones that may have formed a doorway to a huge burial chamber covered over with earth and stones or, an alternative theory suggests, the dolmen may have been designed just as it is seen today, as a kind of elaborate standing stone. No bones have been found during excavations at the site, so either it was not used for burial or the bones were later moved.

It stands on a hill with a wonderful view over the Nevern valley and across to the sea. Quite a magical place to visit...


6 comments:

  1. Amazing structure. I wonder if a doorway where the building's other materials have been taken and reused elsewhere.

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  2. It's a wonderful place; did you know that fairies are said to dance there? Great shots - as always!

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  3. Oh that's amazing! I always feel such awe that these people did such engineering marvels and that they endure still.

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  4. There is something so majestic about standing stones. I prefer them to cathedrals.

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  5. It's a marvel that ancient people were capable of erecting these, and we're still trying to figure out how.

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