Memorials & monuments · South Wales
Fairy Toot
In or near Nempnett Thrubwell.
The Fairy Toot is an extensive oval barrow in the civil parish of Nempnett Thrubwell, Somerset, England (grid reference ST520618). It is an example of the Severn-Cotswold tomb type which consist of pr
Neil Owen — CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons licence
Plan your visit
- Typical visit
- 15 min–45 min
- Nearest railway station
- Nailsea and Backwell · 8.5 km
- Free entry
- Dog-friendly
Getting there & planning your visit
To visit Fairy Toot, the nearest railway station is Nailsea and Backwell, which is 8.5 km away. The postcode for sat-nav is BS40 7UY, and entry is free.
About
The Fairy Toot is an extensive oval barrow in the civil parish of Nempnett Thrubwell, Somerset, England (grid reference ST520618). It is an example of the Severn-Cotswold tomb type which consist of precisely-built, long trapezoid earth mounds covering a burial chamber. Because of this they are a type of chambered long barrow. Fairy Toot was formerly a chambered cairn which is a Scheduled Ancient Monument. Located south-southwest of Howgrove Farm, it is a mound 60 m long, 25 m wide and now 2.5 m high, retained by a stone wall. Its summit is covered with ash trees and shrubs. Formerly it was considerably higher. On being opened and essentially destroyed between 1787 and 1835 by the Reverend Thomas Bere of Butcombe and the Reverend John Skinner of Camerton, it was found to contain two rows of cells, running from south to north, formed by immense stones set edgeways, and covered by others of larger dimensions. A human skull from the barrow is now in the Bristol Museum and Art Gallery. At the time it was conjectured to be a work of the Druids, but its origins are far older and probably date from the Neolithic period. Wade and Wade in their 1929 book "Somerset" described it as "a remarkably fine tumulus of masonry, said to have been one of the finest in Britain, in the chambers of which skeletons have been discovered. A few vestiges of it now only remain, the rest has been used as a lime-kiln." The site was visited in the past as it was known as a place for curing warts.
Photo gallery
Protected designations
- Site of Special Scientific Interest: Severn Estuary SSSI
Designations sourced from Natural England open data under OGL v3.
From the Wikipedia article
The Fairy Toot is an extensive oval barrow in the civil parish of Nempnett Thrubwell, Somerset, England (grid reference ST520618). It is an example of the Severn-Cotswold tomb type which consist of precisely-built, long trapezoid earth mounds covering a burial chamber. Because of this they are a type of chambered long barrow. Fairy Toot was formerly a chambered cairn which is a Scheduled Ancient Monument. Located south-southwest of Howgrove Farm, it is a mound 60 m long, 25 m wide and now 2.5 m high, retained by a stone wall. Its summit is covered with ash trees and shrubs. Formerly it was considerably higher. On being opened and essentially destroyed between 1787 and 1835 by the Reverend Thomas Bere of Butcombe and the Reverend John Skinner of Camerton, it was found to contain two rows of cells, running from south to north, formed by immense stones set edgeways, and covered by others of larger dimensions. A human skull from the barrow is now in the Bristol Museum and Art Gallery. At the time it was conjectured to be a work of the Druids, but its origins are far older and probably date from the Neolithic period. Wade and Wade in their 1929 book "Somerset" described it as "a remarkably fine tumulus of masonry, said to have been one of the finest in Britain, in the chambers of which skeletons have been discovered. A few vestiges of it now only remain, the rest has been used as a lime-kiln." The site was visited in the past as it was known as a place for curing warts.
Excerpt from Wikipedia under CC BY-SA 4.0. See the source article linked in Sources below.
- Coordinates
- 51.3531, -2.6899
- District
- North Somerset
- Parish
- Butcombe
- Postcode
- BS40 7UY
- Parliamentary constituency
- North Somerset
- Nearest railway station
- Nailsea and Backwell — 8.5 km
Sources
- wikipedia: Fairy Toot (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Other places nearby
Walnut Tree Farm Camping
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Nempnett Thrubwell
Towns & cities · 1.8 km
Church of St Mary, Nempnett Thrubwell
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Belvedere Manor
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Butcombe Court Mulberry House The Old Manor
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Blagdon Lake
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Redhill
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Frequently asked questions
- Where is Fairy Toot?
- Fairy Toot is in South Wales, United Kingdom (postcode BS40 7UY), in the parish of Butcombe.
- What is Fairy Toot?
- The Fairy Toot is an extensive oval barrow in the civil parish of Nempnett Thrubwell, Somerset, England (grid reference ST520618). It is an example of the Severn-Cotswold tomb type which consist of pr
- How do I get to Fairy Toot?
- The nearest railway station is Nailsea and Backwell, about 8.5 km away. Drivers can use postcode BS40 7UY.
- Is Fairy Toot a protected site?
- Yes — Fairy Toot is part of the Severn Estuary SSSI Site of Special Scientific Interest.
- Is Fairy Toot free to visit?
- Yes, Fairy Toot is free to enter.
- How do I get to Fairy Toot?
- Drivers can navigate to postcode BS40 7UY. It sits within the North Somerset parliamentary constituency.