|
 |
|
|
| Silbury
Archive 1999 |
|
 Silbury Hill news, views and archive brought to you by Weird Wiltshire Introduction Latest News News Archive Excavations The Hole Beaker People What is it for? What Next? Postcards Forum Wallpaper Links 
|
First published on February 11, 1999 SIGHTSEERS will have even better views of Silbury Hill after the National Trust's purchase of the surrounding meadow. The 30-acre piece of land is horseshoe shaped, and surrounds the hill except on the southern side. At the moment the only vantage point for the hill is the busy A4 to the south-west. The National Trust was able to acquire the land with the money from two bequests. The trust's property manager at Avebury, Chris Gingell, said: "It's a fine piece of landscape, and a striking contrast to the hill. It's also of great archaeological significance." He added: "In recent years we have been able to open up routes to the sanctuary. The purchase of this land completes the network of routes linking them, without having to walk on the A4." The two bequests came from Peggy Guido, a Devizes archaeologist once involved in excavations at Avebury, and from John Pratt, an explorer from West Horsley near Leatherhead, who travelled to Antarctica in the 1950s. Silbury Hill itself is privately owned and in the guardianship of English Heritage, although it has been managed by the National Trust since 1994. Silbury meadow is part of the Avebury and Stonehenge world heritage site, internationally important as a prehistoric landscape. It is also part of the North Wessex Downs area of outstanding natural beauty. The meadow is of archaeological importance as it contains the remnants of a former water meadow system. Mr Gingell said: "We intend to continue the tradition of grazing on the land without using fertilisers." Back to 1999 index |
[an error occurred while processing this directive] [an error occurred while processing this directive] [an error occurred while processing this directive]
|
|
|
| [an error occurred while processing this directive] | |
|
|
| Postcards
I
Wallpaper
I
Site Map
I This is Wiltshire
I Newsquest Digital Media Services
I Other This is sites Home I Crop Circles I Silbury Hill I Stones I UFOs I White Horses I Ghosts I Miscellaneous I Forum |
|