Old Piles of the South West
Archive - Originally posted on "The Horse's Mouth" - 2008-10-18 16:05:45 - Graham Ellis
There's a great deal of learned speculation about the construction and reasons behind Silbury Hill (See Avebury) and a lot of digging has taken place over the years to research the issue - so much so that old shafts have collapsed in recent years leading to extensive remedial works.
Yet Silbury Hill is not the only man made mound of this shape - here's another one I spotted near Midsomer Norton (See Radstock) on my way back from dropping off a delegate at Bristol Airport on Friday afternoon.This mound is a slag heap from the Somerset Coal Field, which was an unexpected industrial outpost set in the heart of the West's countryside, and which only ceased coal production in relatively recent years. Indeed, much of the traffic on the Kennet and Avon Canal originated from the Somerset Coal Canal ... and for a time passed up the Wilts and Berks through Melksham
Perhaps Silbury Hill is just a pre-historic slag heap?