Tapestries
Description: Pen and ink. In Norse mythology, Yggdrasil is an immense ash tree that is central and considered very holy. The branches of Yggdrasil extend far into the heavens, and the tree is supported by three roots that extend far away into other locations; one to the well Urðarbrunnr in the heavens, one to the spring Hvergelmir, and another to the well Mímisbrunnr. Creatures live within Yggdrasil, including the wyrm (dragon) Níðhöggr, an unnamed eagle, and a mischievous squirrel called Ratatoskr who carries messages and insults between the two.
Description: Zennor Quoit is a ruined megalithic burial chamber or dolmen, located on a moor about a mile east of the village of Zennor, Cornwall. It dates to 2500–1500 BC. Aside from the 12.5-tonne roof, which collapsed some time between 1770 and 1865, the chamber is in good condition. The chamber dates to between 2500–1500 BC and is one of eight remaining quoits on the West Penwith moors. Archaeological evidence unearthed on the site has indicated that the chamber was used for the burial of bodies which at some point would be cremated and removed and replaced with others. The purpose of the exterior stones are believed to have been for resting the dead bodies against for the flesh to be devoured by birds before burial. Excavations at the site ha...
Description: Boscawen-ûn is a Bronze age stone circle close to St Buryan in Cornwall. It consists of 19 upright stones in an ellipse with diameters 24.9m and 21.9m, with another, leaning, stone just south of the centre. There is a west-facing gap in the circle, which may have formed an entrance. The Gorseth Kernow was inaugurated here in 1928. An old Welsh triad mentions one of the three principal gorseddau of the Island of Britain as "Beisgawen in Dumnonia", which was taken to refer to Boscawen-ûn by the Gorseth's founders. The stone circle at Boscawen-ûn, was erected in the Bronze Age. It is possible that it was a meeting place for druids in the Iron Age. In any case, a Bardic group (Cornish: Gorsedd) may have existed in this area, because i...
Description: The circle, which is thought to be complete, comprises nineteen granite megaliths and is situated in a field near Land's End. The stones are approximately 1.2 metres high and are spaced apart by three to four metres. The circle is approximately twenty-four metres in diameter, with the tallest stone standing 1.4 metres tall. On the east side is a larger gap between the stones. To the south, is another stone, giving the system a north-south orientation. The local myth about the creation of the stones suggests that nineteen maidens were turned into stone as punishment for dancing on a Sunday. (Dans Maen translates as Stone Dance.) The pipers, two megaliths some distance north-east of the circle, are said to be the petrified remains of t...
Description: Carn Euny is an archaeological site near Sancreed, on the Penwith peninsula in Cornwall, with considerable evidence of both Iron Age and post-Iron Age settlement. Excavations on this site have shown that there was activity at Carn Euny as early as the Neolithic period. There is evidence that shows that the first timber huts in this site were built around 200 BC, but by the 1st century before Christ, these timber huts had been replaced by stone huts. The remains of these stone huts are still visible today. Carn Euny is best known for the well-preserved state of the large fogou, an underground passageway, which is more than 65 feet (20 metres) long. This fogou runs just below the surface of the ground and is roofed with massive stone...
Description: Lanyon Quoit is a dolmen in Cornwall. In the 18th century, the structure was tall enough for a person on horse back to stand under. The capstone rested at 7 feet high with dimensions of 9 feet by 17.5 feet weighing 13.5 tons. The monument is thought to be a burial chamber, perhaps a mausoleum. On 19 October, 1815, Lanyon Quoit was torn down by a storm. Nine years later enough money was raised by local inhabitants to re-erect the structure. During the storm one of the uprights was broken in half. Thus, there are only three uprights today and the structure does not stand as high as it once did. Before the collapse of the structure, it was said to be aligned with the cardinal directions (north, south, east, and west). This gives histo...
