Reconnecting the Sacred at Thornborough Henges
By SEA member, Christine Clarke
Thornborough - View of Central and Northern Henges.
Here in the UK and Europe, our ancestors created henges and stone circles to gather for ceremonial purposes and experience Spirit.
In the process, they created an energetic imprint, which grew each time they gathered, thereby attracting more people to the site. Being with Spirit became a collective experience, and Spirit became both part of the energetic imprint and the focus for it.
When our ancestors created these sites many thousands of years ago, they felt as if they were part of the land and the land was part of them. But as time passed, we forgot the ancient ways and became disconnected from the land.
As a result, we started perceiving it as being there simply to serve us. This attitude eventually led to our sacred sites being owned by just a handful of individuals rather than by everyone.
But as the land became increasingly divided up and fragmented, we also lost sight of the interconnected nature of our sacred sites and their energetic imprint weakened. This failure to understand their interconnectedness made us careless about destroying them, taking us down the path of destroying ourselves in the process.
Reversing this situation so we can once again live in harmonious relationship with our environment, allow the land to speak to us and experience Spirit immanent within it, is one of the greatest challenges of our times.
Uncovering Thornborough Henges
Photo of Thornborough Henges from Bing Satellite
The Thornborough Henges and surrounding landscape, situated a few miles from Ripon in North Yorkshire on a slight plateau near the River Ure, epitomise both this disconnection and the struggles taking place to reverse it.
These little-known Neolithic Henges have until recently been dismissed by archaeologists as unworthy of their attention. It was only in the last 20 years when the Central Henge was about to be destroyed by quarrying that they started receiving the attention they deserved.
A unique triple Henge aligned to Orion’s Belt, it is 1.7km from end to end. The entrances align to the Winter Solstice sunrise and the rising of Sirius, the ‘Dog Star’.
Each circular Henge is almost identical: 238m wide, they have a double entrance surrounded by an irregular external ditch. Their walls were originally 4–5m high and covered in gypsum. A regular internal ditch also created a central circle about 83m in diameter.
There is also an early Neolithic triple-ditched barrow to the southeast of the South Henge, which has a cursus. This cursus is nearest to the Central Henge and is at least 1.2km long and 44m wide. The Central Henge’s entrance sits over the cursus, giving the entire site a cruciform shape.
Another Bronze Age barrow sits between the South and Central Henge. A trackway from it leads southwest to the side of the South Henge. A further three barrows are situated to the northeast between the North and Central Henges.
Quarrying activity has destroyed several of the barrows around the Henges, but a rare horse burial has been found nearby.
A sacred site in a sacred landscape
Photo by Historic England of the Thornborough Henges
This land was once a place of great significance for our ancestors: a sacred site in a sacred landscape. This is evidenced by the fact that housing settlements were situated away from the Henges.
Such structures were always built near water courses, which were seen as both givers and takers of life. Therefore, one of the reasons the Thornborough Henges were thought to have been built in the first place was to honour the water.
As the whole area sits on magnesian limestone bedrock, it would at times have flooded. Water would rise through the limestone to surround the plateau, only for it to drain away again. This rising and falling is unpredictable, thereby creating an air of mystery and magic.
The glacial till and river deposits that cover the limestone are rich in gypsum. Sink holes can suddenly appear as the gypsum dissolves. But as it subsequently solidifies, it looks like bits of bone. At such times, it would appear as if the ancestors were rising from the dead.
Although it is unclear when the Henges fell out of use, it is known they were visited by the Romans and again in Medieval times. But following the enclosure of common land a few hundred years ago, the Henges were split between three villages, artificially separating them both from each other and the community.
A personal journey to the Henges
By the time I first visited them in 2006, the Henges belonged to two different landowners and building materials company, Tarmac. Faced with a farmgate, sheep roaming over the Central Henge and nothing indicating I was allowed in, it felt as if I was trespassing as I entered.
But standing in the middle of the Henge, I was overawed. Despite the amazing expanse of sky above me, I felt enclosed and comforted. The shift of energy from feeling like a trespasser to feeling welcomed as a friend was palpable. But I also picked up a sense of the Henge’s forlornness, isolation and longing.
The walk to the South Henge was even more daunting. With crops in the field, it felt as if I was taking a big risk to even set foot in there, let alone walk to the site itself.
When I arrived, I found the banks were even more damaged than at the Central Henge. One of the entrances had been filled in and a tractor had forced its way over the Henge bank. I was filled with a sense of desolation and resignation, fearing it was past help.
As for the North Henge, knowing it was on private land and being unable to find the entrance, I did not visit. But the quarrying of nearby land was much in evidence.
Exploring the ups and downs
Fast forward to 2023. After much public action, quarrying near the Central Henge was halted and the South and Central Henge were reunited once more.
English Heritage now own all the land around the Henges, including the cursus and most of the barrows, and open it to the public on a free-of-charge basis. The charity is careful to promote respect for the Henges, putting much emphasis on the sacred nature of the site and its national importance. It also welcomes sacred ceremony there.
The Central Henge banks are now being repaired. There is also a long-term plan to expand the rare magnesian limestone grassland, home to wild rock rose, dropwort, and harebells, that surrounds the entire site. So, the energy is changing but there is still a lot of energetic repair work that needs to be done.
On the downside, as soon as English Heritage took over the South and Central Henges, strong, new gates with a lock and lots of barbed wire appeared at the entrance to the North Henge. The owner subsequently put the site on the open market for £200,000 - although the actual land value is much lower - placing it firmly out of the reach of English Heritage and other charities.
So, it appears that only people with deep pockets will be able to afford to buy it – even though as a Scheduled Ancient Monument, the North Henge is protected and cannot be built on. Despite the public outcry and condemnation from neighbours, the landowner still refuses to allow access or cut the price.
Helping the Henges rediscover their purpose
This unfortunate situation reflects a clear lack of recognition of how closely the three Henges are linked energetically to each other and the Spirit of the land. Created by our ancestors to honour the sacred, they reinforce the interconnectedness of all beings. Their unique formation and the presence of the barrows also reflect the link between the universe, our ancestors and ourselves – a link that is broken by the continued separation of the North Henge from its neighbours.
But all is not lost. Efforts are continuing to reunite all three Henges and truly honour this most sacred of landscapes. Indeed, by reconnecting the Central and South Henge, we are already reawakening the old energy lines.
So, send your love and gratitude to all three Henges. Visualise them being together again. Support those who are working to protect them with love and prayers. Find ways to honour them if you visit.
These are all activities that will help the Henges realise their true purpose again. Because once they are re-joined, another broken link in the vital chain that connects all beings will have been repaired.