I went on a mission to find more stone circles, and I’m really excited as there seems to be loads of them around Perthshire. I have passed many single standing stones whilst driving around, but have never seen any circles until recently.
I read that there was a really good stone circle near Aberfeldy called Croft Moraig, so I decided to go and check it out. Unfortunately I didn’t have a map, so I drove up to the area in hope that I would find someone to ask. I stopped in Aberfeldy, and was told to head towards Dull, and that the stones were in a field at the roadside.
Eventually I came across the sign for Dull, which incidently is twinned with Boring, Oregon.
I headed up a track to the Highland Safari centre, where I found a couple of very helpful ladies who were stone enthusiasts themselves. They gave me a map on which they marked the nearby circles and informed me that there was a great example of a four poster circle about 200m down the road.
I managed to park in a nearby passing place, and crossed the road to crawl through a gap in a hedge to access the Carse Farm field. The stones were quite low, with one standing more prominent than the others.
I found a bit more info about these stones when I got home at: http://www.stravaiging.com/history/ancient/site/carse-farm-i#sthash.L4DomKYT.dpuf
“This four-poster circle is close to the edge of a field on the S side of the B846 Aberfeldy-Tummel Bridge road. When it was visited in 1907 by Coles, only 3 of the stones were standing, with the SW stone lying between the two N stones. An excavation in 1964 found the hole for the prostrate stone, and it was re-erected. Also discovered, by the NE stone, was a pit containing cremated bone, charcoal and blackened earth, and a collared urn with “incised geometric ornamentation.”
Having taken a few photos, I thought it was time to move on so I headed to the car to start the journey to the next site – Croft Moraig. I had to drive through Kenmore past the Crannog, and head past Taymouth Castle until I came upon Croft Moraig Farm on the Bolfrack Estate. Apparently the estate has some spectacular gardens, but it was getting late, so I thought I’d better just view the stones and come back another day when the weather was less wet.
I have driven past this spot on a few occasions, and can’t believe I have never noticed the impressive circle in the field here. It really is a fine example, but I couldn’t help but wish it had been in a more secluded spot, as the nearby farm sheds and house did spoil the effect somewhat.
Its easy to miss the impressive Croft Moraig circle from the road
Some pretty amazing trees nearby
The stones are covered in lichens, mosses and markings
I couldn’t find any information about excavations on the site, however it states on the Megalithics website that Croft Moraig was built over three phases. Before the stones there were originally wooden posts marking the site, and that stones were later placed in a horseshoe, before an outer circle of twelve was added. Could the twelve signify anything to do with the calendar?
My final stop of the day was back towards home, past Aberfeldy to a spot called the Lagg. I was told by one of the ladies at the Highland Safari centre that there was a small circle here.
I drove up the steep and very bumpy road, which was well worth the journey when I reached the prize at the top. The Lagg circle (otherwise known as the Lundin Farm circle) comprised of four large stones, with a small supporting stone and a few more smaller stones on the adjacent path. But the most amazing feature of this site was that the stones had been placed around a tree!
A mysterious site of great beauty and peace with a large oak at the centre
This is a really beautiful circle, a small but perfectly formed four-poster. And one whopping big majestic oak tree at the centre of it. I wonder what came first, the stone circle or the tree? Either way, one was placed near the other for sure. Perhaps this oak tree was worshipped or had a meaning in the ancient ceremonies which took place here. The link below shares a bit of information about this site, and it is interesting to note that yet again, cremated bone fragments were found, but again there is no mention of whether it is animal or human. http://www.stonepages.com/ancient_scotland/sites/lundin_f.htm
Discovering the stones has definitely opened my eyes to what is around me locally, and I aim to visit as many sacred sites as and when I can. Perthshire seems to be full of them!
Antidotal Recall 