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Little Meg Stone Circle

Also Known As Maughanby Circle

Near Penrith, Cumbria

Featured Location Guide

Little Meg is a small circle of large kerb stones which probably surrounded a Bronze Age kerb cairn. It is close to the village of Langwathby to the north-east of Penrith in Cumbria.

It consists of 11 stones in a ring surrounding a cairn which once covered a cist containing a cremation with an urn. Two of the stones on the site are decorated with spirals and cup and ring marks. A further stone is now in the Tullie Museum in Carlisle for safe keeping. I cannot find any sizes but from some photos I have seen, it would appear the largest stones is about 3 to 4ft high.

One of the stones was decorated in antiquity with a series of concentric circles and has good carved spirals.

Located  640 metres north-east of the other larger stone circle Long Meg and Her Daughters.

The taller stone on right of picture is known as Little Meg. more

Sir J.Y. Simpson wrote about Little Meg in the 19th century

'Two or three cairns or tumuli existed locally …. One of them, of large size, stood on land belonging to the free school of the township of Maughanby. After removing from its central mound or barrow a quantity of cobble stones mixed with earth, several large stones, one of them only erect, were found arranged in a circle about eighteen feet in diameter. Several of them were buried beneath the projecting edges of the barrow. In the centre of the circle was placed a semi-ovoid cist formed of rough stones, and measuring only three feet nine inches in length, two feet four inches in breadth and ten inches in depth. The cist contained an urn, burnt bones and charcoal. The only ornament upon the rude urn was a raised line near the top.'

 


See Also:

Our Stone Circles Section

Stone Circles of Britain


Further information Grid

 

Location:

Little Meg Stone Circle, Nr Langwathby, Cumbria

Ceremonial County: Cumberland

Grid Reference:

NY576374  Landranger Map Number: 91

Map Link:

StreetMap

Aerial photo: Google Aerial

Route(s):

 

Best Times to Visit:

Perhaps not mid summer when it may be overgrown

E-mail:

 

Website:

www.themodernantiquarian.com

Other useful websites:

www.ancient-scotland.co.uk/site.php?a=102

www.visitcumbria.com/pen/litlmeg.htm

Nearby Locations: Long Meg and Daughters, Cumbria
Other Relevant pages:  
 

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Planning Grid

Location:

Little Meg Stone Circle, Nr Langwathby, Cumbria

Grid Reference:

NY576374  Landranger Map Number: 91

Getting there:

From Little Salkeld take the road to Gamblesby. Continue past the turning for Long Meg on your left, pass Tarn Farm and a strip of woodland on the left side of the road. There is a gap in the woodland, where there are 2 field gates and a wide grass verge. Little Meg is approached through the first field gate.

Access:

Little Meg is 175 yards down a wide, grassy field headland – keep the edge of the wood directly on your left. You should see Little Meg, a small low circle, from the gate.

Parking:

On the wide grass verge near the gate entrance, quite level, short grass.

Facilities:

None

Things To Do, See and Photograph:

 

What to take:

 

Nature highlights:

 

Address:

Nr Langwathby

Penrith

Cumbria

Postcode:

CA10 1NP

Telephone:

 

Opening times:

Open at all times

Charges:

None

Photo Restrictions:

None

Other Restrictions: None
Special Needs Access: Wheelchair users may need assistance. The land immediately surrounding the circle is bumpy.
Special Needs Facilities:  
Children Facilities:  
Dogs Allowed: no known restrictions

Please let us know any other information that we can add to the Further information and Planning Grids or page and any errors that you discover. Before making a long trip to any location it is always wise to double check the current information, websites like magazines may be correct at the time the information is written, but things change and it is of course impossible to double check all entries on a regular basis. If you have any good photographs that you feel would improve the illustration of this page then please let us have copies. In referring to this page it is helpful if you quote both the Page Ref and Topic or Section references from the Grid below. To print the planning grid select it then right click and print the selected area.

Please submit information on locations you discover so that this system continues to grow.

 


By: Keith Park Section: Stones Circles Key:
Page Ref: little_meg_stone_circle Topic: Stone Circles Last Updated: 10/2012

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