Cissbury Ring
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Cissbury Ring is a hill fort on the South Downs, in the borough of Worthing, and about 4 miles from its town centre, in the English county of West Sussex.
Contents |
[edit] Hill fort
It is the largest hill fort in Sussex and among the largest in Britain overall. The earthworks that form the fortifications were built around the beginning of the Middle Iron-Age but abandoned in the period 50 BC - 50 AD.
[edit] Flint mines
Long before the hill was fortified, flint mines were being excavated in the area. Some shafts went down as far as 40 feet. The shafts at Cissbury were excavated with antler picks, much like those at Grimes Graves and elsewhere. Flint was the common material for making stone axes for felling timber and working wood during the Neolithic period.
[edit] Structure
The ditches and banks are the remains of a defensive wall that enclosed 65 acres of land; the inner band of the wall is over a mile around. The ditches are said to be as deep as three metres and were filled with loosened chalk and covered with timber palisade. The 600-foot (184m) hill is open to the public but the climb is said to be "not for the faint hearted." From the top, one is able to see to the west Selsey, Chichester Cathedral, the Spinnaker Tower and the Isle of Wight. To the east, one is able to see Brighton, the Seven Sisters and Beachy Head. Cissbury Ring is the highest point in the borough of Worthing.
[edit] Later history
During World War II, Cissbury Ring was used as a camp for the 2nd Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders in preparation for the Normandy landings.
The ring has many ghostly legends surrounding it and has been a haunt for ghost hunters over the years.
Cissbury Ring is owned by the National Trust and is a Scheduled Ancient Monument.
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- Cissbury Ring
- Cissbury Ring
- Aerial photo of Cissbury Ring. Other map and aerial photo sources.
 |
This article relating to archaeology in Europe is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
