Mitchell's Fold, nr Chirbury, Shropshire
Mitchell’s Fold is a Bronze Age stone circle. Today there are fifteen stones, arranged in a rough circle, but there may once have been as many as thirty. The tallest stone was once one of a pair, and these would have formed an impressive entrance into the circle. It is thought that there may also have been a central stone. We do not fully understand why stone circles were built, but it is clear that they were ritually important for prehistoric people. They may have provided a focus for funerary rites, or perhaps acted as a calandar, with carefully aligned stones marking important lunar or solar events. Mitchell's Fold is just one of a remarkable number of prehistoric monuments in the surrounding landscape. Nearby was the important Bronze Age axe factory at Cwm Mawr, where distinctive axe-hammers were produced and traded extensively into central Wales and England. This site is now in the care of English Heritage (2010). Read detailed archaeological description.
