The Longstone, Mottistone
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The Longstone is situated near Mottistone close to the south west coast of the Isle of Wight. It is the only Megalithic monument on the Isle of Wight.
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[edit] Description and location
The Longstone in fact consists of two stones of local greensand sandstone probably sourced from a vein a hundred metres away. The larger stands at 3.9 metres (13 feet) with the smaller lying at its feet. They are on the edge of a wooded area in small fenced enclosure just off Strawberry Lane, near Mottistone. The meaning of Mottistone, the Speaker’s or pleader’s stone, almost certainly derives from the Longstone.
Until the mid nineteen century the smaller stone was further to the south but in 1856 a local landowner, Lord Dillon, had it turned over to discover if it possessed a mortice hole (it did not). Its present position has led to fanciful tales of it being a sacrificial altar stone and in common with many other megalithic monuments modern pagan meetings and rituals are associated with the Longstone.
[edit] Associated long barrow
The stones are associated with a narrow mound 21 metres (70 feet) in length running away from them in a westerly direction. Excavations in September 1956 by C.N. Hawkes appeared to confirm that this was the remains of a long barrow. This may mean that the stones are the remains of an entrance structure. The presence of a long barrow in this part of England not on chalk or limestone is rare.
[edit] Dating
Although dating is difficult, pottery recovered during the 1956 excavation indicated the mound, and therefore in all likelihood the stones, originated during the Neolithic.
[edit] References
- Hawkes, J. (1957). "The Longstone, Mottistone" Antiquity 31(123): 147 - 152.
