Oak bench installed within the Scheduled Ancient Monument at Octagon Wood near Willington.
Another piece of the BRVP Heritage Interpretation Project was installed at Octagon Wood which surrounds part of the Neolithic and Bronze Age mortuary complex which is a nationally recognized Scheduled Ancient Monument.
The bench is constructed from locally sourced Oak and was made by local lad Luke Green. The 5 carvings that include the Uffington white horse, a bronze age shield, a design from a clay
pot, a pennanullar ring and a crescent moon reflects the period when the Neolithic and Bronze Age mortuary complex was in use.
To visit the bench follow the Bedford to Sandy Route 51 Cycleway as it lies adjacent to the access route and is located west of Willington village.
For more information about the area’s heritage – try this
Carving of a bronze age shield located on the bench
You are looking down towards one of Bedford’s most important Neolithic mortuary areas. Communities gathered here for important ceremonies over 4,500 years ago to lay out the recently deceased to the elements. Later generations built circular mounds beside the Neolithic mortuary grounds. Archaeologists still don’t know what the mounds were for but examples elsewhere suggest that many were used for the burial of high-status individuals in the Bronze Age.
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