Swinside

During the Late Neolithic, British society underwent a series of major changes. Between 3800 and 3200 BC This appears to have coincided with a wave of Irish Passage Tomb culture appearing across the west of Great Britain, with affinities with the Brú na Bóinne of eastern Ireland. Rock art reminiscent of this culture – dated to the mid to late Neolithic – is found across the Lake District, particularly associated with the Langdale axe factory, which quarried around a third of all known polished stone axes from Neolithic Britain. This culture appears to have swept up and down the coast of Great Britain, leaving megalithic stone circles and passage tombs in their wake. The prominent…

The stones used in the construction of Swinside were porphyritic slate collected from the adjacent fells, and are of the type that was known locally as "grey cobbles" by the 20th century. These features are also found at Stonehenge's bluestone circle. Aubrey Burl classed such circles as "Cumbrian Circles": large, open stone enclosures spacious enough for gatherings. Although often thought widespread, true stone circles of this type are uncommon, with only five surviving in Cumbria: Swinside, Castlerigg, Elva Plain, Long Meg, and Gamelands. Others are also found locally, including the Twelve Apostles, the Girdle Stanes, and further to the north in Northumbria there are the Hethpool stone…