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The Isles of Scilly are a small island group west of Cornwall. Despite their small size, they abound in prehistoric sites dating from the Stone Age to the Bronze Age, including cairns, burial chambers and passage graves. While prehistoric sites are found on all islands, this image gallery focuses on the two larger islands St. Mary's and St. Agnes.
While the islands are remote today, they were once directly connected by a land bridge with Cornwall, a land called "Lyonesse" in traditional legends and folklore. About 18,000 years ago, at the height of the last glacial period, the sea level was about 100 metres (328 feet) below its current level, which meant that not only were all of the Scillonian islands connected, but they represented a hilly patch towards the western end of Lyonesse.
It is in these directly connected lands that people lived and built the prehistoric monuments that we can visit today. There are likely many more found below sea level. As the ice melted, sea levels rose slowly but noticeably in a human lifetime. About 10,000 years ago, sea levels were still 30 metres (98 feet) below current levels, and around 6,000 years ago they were about 5 metres (16 feet) lower than today.
Local legends say that on what is now the Seven Stones Reef (about 1/3 of the way to Cornwall) stood a great city, the City of Lions, with a turreted castle and no less than 140 churches. As the sea swallowed the city, only one man and his horse survived, and the Vyvyan family of Cornwall claims to be descended from this man.
The Isles of Scilly are a fantastic destination for lovers of prehistory, with stunning nature and friendly people to welcome travellers.
Bant's Carn is a Scillionian entrance grave in very well-preserved condition. It is located on the island of St. Mary's in the Isles of Scilly, UK. It was excavated in 1900 by the archaeologist George Bonsor where he found piles of cremated bones at the end of the chamber as well as Bronze Agepottery shards. The burial chamber is surrounded by a round cairn that is surrounded by a stone kerb.
Even though human remains were found at the site, archaeologists believe that entrance graves such as this one were not only used as graves, but may have had other ritual uses.
The burial chamber dates back to the Bronze Age (c. 2500 to 800 BCE) and is now surrounded by the ruins of the later Halangy Down settlement which dates to the Iron Age (c. 300 BCE) and the early Middle Ages (c. 600 CE). The inhabitants of the settlement did not take stones from the cairn, apparently respecting the much older site. There is also a prehistoric field system adjacent to the site, which is maintained by English Heritage.
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