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Heritage Journal
news and views from Heritage Action
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Orange are at it again!
May 26, 2006, 9:39 pm
We've received word that Orange have applied to erect an 8m tall double mobile phone mast about 100m from the White Horse stone in Medway, Kent. This latest application comes less than two years after a failed attempt to gain permission for a 15m high mast to be situated 'yards from the stone'. Orange have changed both the size, look and location of the mast to try and make it more in keeping with the surroundings.
However the new site will be just off the route to the stone and within yards of an an area designated AONB and SSSI. Despite the 'innovative' new design, the specs seem to show that this mast will be clearly visible to all who walk past and will impinge on their enjoyment of the countryside. 
Photo: Jane Tomlinson
The reason behind the new application is to provide better coverage to passengers on the new Euro tunnel line that has scarred this already overdeveloped piece of rural England. The question we should be asking is "Do an extra 10 seconds coverage really justify the extra damage to this fragile environment?", we say no.
The application can be read online at the Maidstone county council pages here (ref 06/0792).
More details of the fight to prevent it by are available here If you wish to object to this application you need to do so by 6th June 2006 and can do so by writing to:
Katie Lazam.
Planning Dept
13 Tonbridge Road
Maidstone Kent, ME16 8HG
England
Objections can also be emailed to Katie Lazam at Maidstone Council. You will need to include Planning Application Reference: MA/06/0792/N in any correspondence.
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Willy Hall's Wood stone: the red paint is fading
May 26, 2006, 10:06 am
Willy Hall's Wood stone in West Yorkshire has had it's fair share of abuse from both natural weathering over the millennia and more recently from graffiti. David Raven very kindly sent us an update of the stone which was badly sprayed with red paint more than three years ago.
Photo: David Raven
Thankfully, weathering appears to be removing the paint quite naturally, although more recently some disrespectful idiot has scrawled the word 'red' onto the surface of this ancient carved boulder.
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Eathorne menhir revisited
May 4, 2006, 5:55 pm
In August 2005 we reported on the good news that the Eathorne Menhir in Cornwall had been re-erected.
We have recently received two emails from the previous owners of the farm, the Clemoes, objecting to us describing them as 'devout Methodists'. It appears we got this part of the story wrong; they describe themselves as 'committed Christians'.
They say they did not understand the significance of the stone. However, it is our understanding that their decision to remove the stone was taken with the assistance of the evangelical minister Rev Michael Caddick. Quite why a farmer would consult a minister about removal of a supposed 'rubbing stone' is beyond us.
Once the Clemoes had moved the stone there was - quite rightly - an outcry from the local community and eventually, through pressure of letters from Meyn Mamvro readers and the Cornwall Archaeological Unit magazine, the Clemoes agreed to the stone being re-erected, but in the wrong place. In their words: "when we were told that the stone was for mating with another stone, we agreed to it being put back against the edge of the field as we were receiving letters which were unpleasant and wanted this to stop".
Rather than repair the damage they had caused - as they say: "we wanted it out of the way while we lived there" - it appears that the stone was fenced in and covered in chicken wire to encourage ivy to hide it. On visits to the area a couple of years ago, Heritage Action's site inspector for Cornwall, Alan Simkins said: "despite the assistance of GPS I was unable to locate the stone, so well had it been hidden from view." Thankfully the new owners were much more heritage and conservation minded and the story has a happy ending.
What this whole saga highlights is that there are still people out there who are quite happy to take the law into their own hands without consulting the authorities or taking into consideration other people's views.
The Clemoes say they are: "...proud of being Cornish, and allowing the stone to (be) put against the hedge, we thought this would be enough." Clearly they are not Cornish enough to understand the rich, fragile and ancient heritage of the land they had bought.
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Rock art and sheep don't mix
May 2, 2006, 4:30 pm
Rock carvings at Cairnheads
share their field with a flock of sheep. Photo: Ian Hobson |
On a recent visit to Northumberland, one of HA's members visited a panel of once-lost rock art at Cairnheads, near the town of Wooler. The panel in question was first uncovered in 1859, but was covered over with turf to protect it from the ravages of time. It was briefly uncovered in 1933, and then buried again until 2004, since which time it has been in the open air. |
Turfing over panels of rock art is contentious, as it stops people from viewing the carvings but it cannot be denied that it is a good method of protecting carvings from the elements.
The carvings today. Photo: Ian Hobson
In the case of the carvings at Cairnheads, covering the panel would also protect the soft stone from any damage by the hooves of the sheep who populate the field.
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A comparison of the drawings made in the 19th century with the stone in it's present state seems to indicate that many of the carvings have eroded. The complex and (in at least one case) unique designs recorded by Mr Bruce, Ms Proctor and Mr Tate in those days are now very difficult, if not impossible, to trace. |
Perhaps it's time this panel was tucked away again? At the very least, we think it would seem prudent to restrict the movement of livestock over these very fragile and enigmatic ancient carvings.
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