You’ve heard of Stonehenge. Everyone has. But if you drive about six miles south of Bristol, past the winding lanes of the Chew Valley, you’ll find a site that’s arguably more mind-blowing—and almost nobody is there.
Stanton Drew Circles and Cove is the third-largest complex of standing stones in England. It’s huge. Honestly, the scale of it is hard to wrap your head around when you’re just standing in a farmer's field with a few sheep. While the world's tourists are busy being funneled through the gift shop at Amesbury, Stanton Drew remains a raw, quiet, and slightly muddy masterpiece of the Neolithic age.
Most people think of it as just a few clusters of "petrified" wedding guests. That's the local legend, anyway. But what archaeologists found under the soil here back in 1997 changed everything. It wasn't just a circle; it was a massive, complex temple that makes other sites look like a warm-up act.
Why size actually matters here
The Great Circle at Stanton Drew is roughly 113 meters across. To put that in perspective, Stonehenge’s central stone circle is about 33 meters. You could basically fit Stonehenge inside the Great Circle at Stanton Drew and still have room for a decent-sized parking lot.
There are 26 stones still standing or lying in the grass of the Great Circle, but the real magic is invisible. In 1997, a geophysical survey led by Andrew David from English Heritage revealed that the stones were just the final "shell" of a much more intense structure. Underground, they found nine concentric rings of post-holes.
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We’re talking about a forest of timber. Around 400 to 500 massive wooden posts once stood here, some of them potentially as thick as tree trunks. Imagine a wooden version of a cathedral, hundreds of years before the Pyramids of Giza were even a thought. It wasn't just a circle; it was a labyrinth of wood and shadow.
The Cove: A 6,000-year-old mystery in a pub garden
The "Cove" is arguably the weirdest part of the whole setup. You won't find it in the main field. Instead, you have to walk over to the Druid’s Arms pub. In the garden, right next to where people are having a pint, three massive stones lean against each other.
They’re different.
While the main circles are made of local rocks and dolomitic conglomerate, the Cove stones feel older. And they are. Archaeological consensus, bolstered by surveys in 2009 and 2010 by the Bath and Camerton Archaeological Society (BACAS), suggests the Cove is about 1,000 years older than the circles. It’s likely the remains of a "portal dolmen" or a long barrow—basically a Neolithic tomb that was already ancient by the time the main stone circles were put up.
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It’s kinda cool that you can touch these stones while waiting for your chips. There's no rope, no security, just 6,000 years of history sitting by a picnic table.
The legend of the petrified wedding
You can't talk about Stanton Drew without mentioning the "Wedding." Local folklore says a wedding party was held on a Saturday night. The piper refused to play past midnight because it was the Sabbath, so the Devil showed up disguised as a fiddler. He played so well that the guests danced until dawn—at which point they were all turned to stone for their sins.
- The Great Circle? Those are the dancers.
- The smaller North East circle? The musicians.
- The Cove? That’s the bride, the groom, and the drunk parson being held up by them.
It’s a fun story, but it’s basically 17th-century propaganda to keep people in church on Sundays.
The alignment most people miss
If you stand at the Cove and look through the center of the Great Circle toward the North East Circle, you’re looking at a deliberate alignment. Experts like John Wood the Elder (the guy who designed half of Bath) obsessed over this in the 1700s. He thought it was a Druid university.
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Modern archaeoastronomy suggests the site aligns with the midwinter solstice sunset and the midsummer sunrise. These people weren't just dragging heavy rocks across Somerset for the exercise; they were mapping the sky with incredible precision.
What to know before you go
If you’re planning a trip, don't expect a visitor center.
- Access: You enter the main field through a small gate near the church.
- The "Honesty Box": There’s a £1 fee to enter the circles field, which goes to the landowner. It’s literally a metal box.
- Footwear: Wear boots. It’s a working farm. If it’s rained in the last week, you’re going to be ankle-deep in Somerset mud.
- Parking: It’s tight. There’s a tiny area by the church, or you can park at the Druid’s Arms if you’re heading in for a drink or food after.
Why it still matters
Stanton Drew is a reminder that our ancestors were way more sophisticated than we give them credit for. They weren't just "cavemen." They were engineers, astronomers, and architects who understood the landscape on a level we've mostly forgotten.
Standing in the middle of the Great Circle at dusk, with the River Chew nearby and the silence of the valley, you feel it. It doesn't need the hype of Stonehenge. It’s better because it’s empty.
Next steps for your visit:
Start at the Druid’s Arms to see the Cove first—it sets the chronological stage. Then, walk past the church to the "Stone Close" field. Make sure to bring a physical map or download one beforehand, as mobile signal in the dip of the valley is hit-or-miss. Look for the "Hautville’s Quoit" stone in the field across the river to the north to see the full extent of the complex.