Bullring henge

Archaeological place

What is recorded here

The Bull Ring at Dove Holes is a Late Neolithic henge enclosing an oval space with entrances to the north and south. Excavation found flint, pottery, pits and stakeholes, while later tramway building, war trenches and farming damaged parts of the bank and nearby barrows.

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Who made it and when

Neolithic communities built the earthwork, though no named person or single group can be identified. An older oval barrow nearby and a later bowl barrow show that people returned to this ceremonial ground over a long period.

How it was made and used

A broad bank and internal ditch enclosed an area about 53 by 46 metres, entered across two causeways. A stone recorded in 1789 may indicate a former stone setting, but excavation found no proof of a complete stone circle.

What was found

Micah Salt's 1902 trench reportedly found pottery and flint, though those objects are lost. Work in 1949 established both entrances and original dimensions; a 1984 excavation found more pottery, flint, pits and stakeholes following the bank.

What remains

The circular bank, inner ditch, entrances and adjacent barrows remain visible, although the north entrance, banks and barrows have been cut by roads, ploughing and a wartime trench. Surveys in 2000 found no clear new buried plan.

Why it mattered

The Bull Ring preserves a rare ceremonial enclosure and a sequence of burial monuments in the Peak District. Its repeated investigation also shows how early claims, such as a vanished stone circle, must be separated from what excavation actually proved.