- The Thornborough Henges are Scheduled Ancient Monuments located in North Yorkshire which were constructed during the Bronze Age between 3,500 – 2,500 BCE.
- They are very similar to the Cursus and Henges located at Stonehenge and Avebury in Wiltshire.
The Site
- The Henges extend for approximately one mile (1.6km), in a northwest-southeast direction.
- They consist of an alignment of three Henges with a slight kink, reminiscent of Orion’s Belt.
- It is thought that the banks of the Henges were covered in Gypsum which would have produced a white reflection visible from many miles away.
- A Cursus also extends for approximately one mile (1.6km) east-west, starting at the village of Thornborough, passing under the centre Henge and ending close to the River Ure.
Devil's Arrows
- These are the three Standing Stones located at nearby Boroughbridge, which are also aligned northwest-southeast.
The Stone Axe and Flint Road
- Until recent times, rows of Bronze Age Stones existed on the other side of the Pennines in eastern Cumbria.
- The Bronze Age sites on both sides of the Pennines appear to have been linked by the Stone Axe and Flint trading route.
Photo and map: Thornborough Henges