The Long Cairn of Rough Tor

Lichen forming on the small boulder in the upper section of the cairn.

It’s the first weekend of the New Year and I’m desperate to get outdoors, but the weather is totally unsuitable for the long walk on the moors I had in mind. Instead, I’ve been researching the Long Cairn of Rough Tor, a well-known feature to regular walkers and amateur archaeologists in the area, but less know to casual visitors and first-time tourists.

Rough Tor (often spelled Roughtor locally and pronounced ‘row-tor’) is the second-highest peak on Bodmin Moor in Cornwall, and a significant prehistoric monument that offers insight into different aspects of early human activity in the region.

Long cairns are typically associated with the Early Neolithic period, around 4000–3000 BCE, and are often interpreted as burial or ceremonial sites. The long cairn on Rough Tor is an elongated mound of stones, approximately 42 meters in length, with a width of about 11 meters. It tapers towards its ends, a characteristic feature of long cairns, and is oriented along an east-west axis, with its broader end to the east. While this orientation is common among long cairns, the path taken is thought to have had symbolic or ritual significance. While the cairn is partially ruined, traces of chambered structures are evident, particularly at the eastern end. These chambers would likely have been used for the deposition of human remains, suggesting a funerary function.

The cairn is situated in a prominent position on the southeastern slopes of Rough Tor, overlooking much of the surrounding landscape, and this placement may have been chosen for its visibility, association with the natural features close by, and their alignment to the sun at certain times of the year. of the moor, especially Rough Tor itself and the adjacent Brown Willy, the highest point in Cornwall.

The Rough Tor long cairn reflects the transition from a hunter-gatherer to a more settled, agrarian lifestyle in the Neolithic period. Its construction would have required coordinated labor, indicating social organization and a shared belief system. The monument's presence on Bodmin Moor aligns with the area's reputation as a prehistoric ritual landscape, rich in stone circles, burial mounds, and standing stones. Today, the cairn is protected as a Scheduled Monument, valued for its contribution to understanding early human activity and spiritual practices in Cornwall. It remains a site of archaeological interest and cultural heritage within the dramatic landscape of Bodmin Moor.