Porth Hellick Down Burial Chamber

Archaeological place

Explorer Tom

On St Mary’s eastern side, Porth Hellick Down Burial Chamber rises from the grass like a stone doorway whose builders have been expecting guests for several thousand years. Tom knocked only in his imagination; the real invitation is to look at the mound, its passage and the weighty stones that have outlasted every would-be doorman. This Scillonian Bronze Age entrance grave is among the largest of its kind. A ring of stone slabs holds the mound in place, while an uncovered passage leads to a stone-lined chamber beneath four capstones. English Heritage describes an unusual kink where passage and chamber meet, with a projecting jambstone nearly blocking the way. It gives Tom’s imaginary doorway a rather strict bouncer, although nobody knows what its makers intended that stone to mean. The mound is about 12 metres across and belongs to a wider cemetery on Porth Hellick Down. When the chamber was excavated in 1899, its contents had long since disappeared; the recorded finds were fragments of Bronze Age pottery. Other entrance graves have yielded cremated remains, but that cannot be claimed for this chamber. The surrounding islands looked different when it was built, because sea levels were lower and land now under water was dry. Picture that vanished country without inventing its inhabitants’ names. English Heritage offers free entry at reasonable times in daylight. The chamber is best reached on foot or by bicycle, and the approach includes a slope and uneven surfaces. Dogs are welcome on leads. Bring water and a careful step; food and toilets are in Hugh Town, not beside the mound. Give the old stones room to breathe, then carry the puzzle onward across St Mary’s.

What is recorded here

Map note: Porth Hellick Down Burial Chamber is an ancient site near Normandy, Isles of Scilly, England. See what else is recorded around this spot before making up the rest.

From OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors) n503697602

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