The Nine Ladies of Stanton Moor
       
     
The King Stone. This is supposedly an outlier to The Nine Ladies stone circle
       
     
The recumbent and 10th stone in the circle
       
     
One of the many Bronze Age burial cairns
       
     
Bronze Age cairns and stone circles are scattered widely across the moor
       
     
The Cork Stone, a naturally occurring eratic but possibly a sacred stone
       
     
DSH_8648.jpg
       
     
The Andle Stone, like The Cork Stone, is another naturally occurring grand eratic
       
     
The memorial inscription to the Duke of Wellington on the reverse of The Andle Stone
       
     
The memorial inscription to Lieut. Colonel William Thornhill who fought alongside The Duke of Wellington at Waterloo
       
     
The diminutive Doll Tor stone circle on the very edge of Stanton Moor
       
     
Doll Tor Cairn Circle_1.jpg
       
     
The small burial cist adjacent to the stone circle
       
     
The Nine Ladies of Stanton Moor
       
     
The Nine Ladies of Stanton Moor

Just how I like my ancient monuments, devoid of people, but not devoid of character. The Nine Ladies stone circle may be small, but it’s one of the highlights of a highly ritualistic landscape and very enigmatic.

The King Stone. This is supposedly an outlier to The Nine Ladies stone circle
       
     
The King Stone. This is supposedly an outlier to The Nine Ladies stone circle
The recumbent and 10th stone in the circle
       
     
The recumbent and 10th stone in the circle
One of the many Bronze Age burial cairns
       
     
One of the many Bronze Age burial cairns
Bronze Age cairns and stone circles are scattered widely across the moor
       
     
Bronze Age cairns and stone circles are scattered widely across the moor
The Cork Stone, a naturally occurring eratic but possibly a sacred stone
       
     
The Cork Stone, a naturally occurring eratic but possibly a sacred stone

The Cork Stone near the Nine Ladies Stone Circle in the Peak District looks very much like a menhir or standing stone, but is in fact a natural millstone grit erratic. Though considering how many Neolithic and Bronze Age sites there are nearby you’d like to think that our ancestors probably venerated it. I know I would have!

DSH_8648.jpg
       
     
The Andle Stone, like The Cork Stone, is another naturally occurring grand eratic
       
     
The Andle Stone, like The Cork Stone, is another naturally occurring grand eratic

The Andle Stone, like its nearby neighbour the Cork Stone, is a naturally occurring monumental chunk of Millstone Grit on Stanton Moor, Derbyshire. The name obviously derives from the fact that it has ‘andles and foot holds to aid your 3m climb to the top. Once there you can take in the wonderful view and read the many inscriptions gouged into it by the likes of JJ Roberts. Not quite sure what our venerable ancestors would have made of it or, indeed The Duke of Wellington, who also has an inscription on the Western face of the stone.

The memorial inscription to the Duke of Wellington on the reverse of The Andle Stone
       
     
The memorial inscription to the Duke of Wellington on the reverse of The Andle Stone

FIELD-MARSHALL/ DUKE OF WELLINGTON/ DIED 14 SEPT 1852,/ AGED 82 YEARS,

/ ASSYE 1803 WATERLOO 1815./ T MASTERS.

The memorial inscription to Lieut. Colonel William Thornhill who fought alongside The Duke of Wellington at Waterloo
       
     
The memorial inscription to Lieut. Colonel William Thornhill who fought alongside The Duke of Wellington at Waterloo

/ LIEUT-COLONEL/ WILLIAM THORNHILL/ 7 HUSSARS/ DIED 9 DECR. 1851, / AGED 71 YEARS,

The diminutive Doll Tor stone circle on the very edge of Stanton Moor
       
     
The diminutive Doll Tor stone circle on the very edge of Stanton Moor
Doll Tor Cairn Circle_1.jpg
       
     
The small burial cist adjacent to the stone circle
       
     
The small burial cist adjacent to the stone circle