Across Aberdeenshire lie a series of monument known as Recumbent Stone Circles. Three of these stone circles were surveyed using a combination of 3D laser scanning and photogrammetry.
The surveys of the Recumbent Stone Circles were commissioned and funded by Forestry and Land Scotland. Access to Midmar Kirk was granted by kind permission of Aberdeenshire Council.
Nine Stanes Recumbent Stone Circle.
The Recumbent Stone Circle at Midmar Kirk.
Recumbent Stone Circle and Ring Cairn in Clune Wood.
Recumbent Stone Circles
Unique to Aberdeenshire, recumbent stone circles date from the late Neolithic and Early Bronze Age – the last few centuries of the third millennium BC. They seem to have been constructed around existing low stone ring cairns, wrapping the central funerary pyre with a large recumbent stone and a circle of standing stones.
The ‘recumbent’ stones are laid flat between two large upright stones known as ‘flankers’. The recumbent and flankers form an altar or a symbolic blocked entrance, and are usually found on the SSE – WSW arc of a circle of stones that gradually decrease in height towards the rear. The position of the recumbent and flankers has long been associated with a lunar alignment – a portal that was seemingly intended to frame the midsummer full moon as it stooped before setting.
However, most recumbent stone circles are roughly aligned in the general direction of sunset at the midwinter solstice. The architecture is not precise – and the midwinter sun sets in the south west over the course of several weeks. The recumbent can still be thought of as a blocking stone, but it was also deliberately aligned, reflecting (and perhaps continuing) the cosmology that is visible in the passage tombs and stone circles of several centuries earlier.
When visiting a recumbent stone circle today, you should consider your approach, and how the circle appears as you draw closer. Consider its visibility from a distance, and the views both into and out from the circle. Consider the ‘front’ and ‘back’ of the monument, and the effect of the grading in height has on perspectives. Does the circle face inside or outside? Where will you stand? Do you stand outside, looking in – or inside, looking out?
Cole Henley’s cinematic illustrations have a theme of shadows and light. Each panel focuses on a seasonal or special event. The stone circle is a stage, with many different lived experiences taking place throughout the seasons.
The time of renewal promised by the winter solstice sunset setting in front of the stone circle, marking the change from the old year passed to the new year ahead.
© Cole Henley
Celebrating the summer solstice sunrise rising behind the stone circle, the long shadows emerging in the early dawn only to shorten as the sun ascends into the sky.
© Cole Henley
The wonder of a solar eclipse, the dramatic scene being watched by a Priest of the Sun.
© Cole Henley
A funerary pyre, with onlookers caught in the flickering light from the fire, the smoke lifting the spirit into the dark night sky.
© Cole Henley
Nine Stanes
The Recumbent Stone Circle of Nine Stanes lies in a clearing in Mulloch Wood, on a saddle between Mulloch Hill and the Garrol Hills. The name Nine Stanes is misleading as although there are now nine stones standing, the circle truly comprises 11 stones, of which one, in the NW, has been removed and one, in the WNW, reduced to a stump.
The stone setting is not fully circular, with the recumbent forming a flattened façade to the SE of the circle. The stones on the E of the circle are graded to reduce in height and spacing from S to N, while those on the W are more even.
The site was excavated by Frederick Coles, Assistant Keeper at the National Museum of Antiquities of Scotland, in 1904. Coles’ investigation revealed ‘a double row of smallish earth fast stones’ around the circumference of the circle, with the orthostats standing on its line. Coles concluded these were the remains of an old dyke, although it is equally possible that they are a feature of the circle.
Within the interior of the circle there is a low cairn, Coles’ excavation showed this was bounded by a kerb of boulders, increasing in size towards the Recumbent. At the centre of the cairn was a court, bounded by two rings of kerbstones, likely representing successive phases of construction. Within the court, deposits of burnt bone and pottery were discovered.
The recumbent and flankers at Nine Stanes Stone Circle
Coles 1905 excavation plan of Nine Stanes Stone Circle. With Kind permission of The Society of Antiquaries of Scotland
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Midmar Kirk
The recumbent stone circle at Midmar Kirk is one of the best-known recumbent stone circles in Aberdeenshire. The circle is enclosed by a gravel path in the burial ground of Midmar Kirk. The recumbent stone and its flankers, along with five orthostats, are all that remain of what was likely a setting of 11 stones. The carefully levelled recumbent stone’s top is covered with graffiti, including initials, at least one date (1864), and symbols with similarities to medieval mason’s marks.
The Kirk was built next to the recumbent stone circle as there was a belief in the 18th century that these monuments were druidic religious structures and that druidism was a Christian offshoot. The stone circle has been tidied and manicured through the life of the kirk and burial ground. There are slight hints at the presence of a cairn within the circle, with a scarp extending beyond the southern edge of the ring the best suggestion of the cairn’s presence.
The recumbent Stone Circle in Midmar Kirk & Burial Ground
Midmar Kirk Recument Stone Circle, coloured by elevation
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Clune Wood
This Recumbent Stone Circle lies on a low rise in a clearing at the southern edge of Clune Wood. The roughly oval circle contains nine stones, although two are fallen and one is reduced to a stump. The recumbent and flankers lie in the SE arc, with the remaining stones evenly spaced and decreasing in size away from the recumbent. The fallen stones have been deliberately felled, both showing signs of having been or prepared to be split lengthways.
The interior of the circle contains a cairn up to 1m in height. The cairn has been heavily disturbed by the creation of a small walled enclosure and the digging of two pits, one behind the recumbent and one in the centre. The pits were likely dug in search of treasure, while the enclosure is probably the remains of a stock enclosure.
Immediately adjacent to the Stone Circle lies a ring cairn. The cairn’s top is flat and level, and a single outer kerb may be visible in the SSW arc. The central court of the cairn is defined by an oval setting of upright granite stones, graded in height to rise from the NE to SW.
Clune Wood Recumbent Stone Circle and ring cairn, visualisation of laser scan point cloud data.
The recumbent and flankers at Clune Wood.
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header image: © Colin Park
