Knowlton Circles, Neolithic henge complex in Dorset, England
Knowlton Circles is a group of four Neolithic henges in Dorset, England, each formed by circular earthen banks and ditches set into a flat, open landscape. The largest of the four, Church Henge, is the best preserved and contains the ruins of a medieval church at its center.
The henges were built during the Neolithic period and served as gathering or ceremonial places for prehistoric communities. In the medieval period, a church was built inside the largest enclosure, and Anglo-Saxon burials were made nearby, with bodies placed in an east-west orientation.
The ruins of a Norman church still stand inside Church Henge, built directly on top of the older earthwork during the medieval period. Walking through the site, visitors can see how two very different traditions of belief came to share the same ground.
The site sits in open countryside and can be visited during daylight hours without a formal entrance, so wear sturdy shoes and dress for the weather. The earthworks are easy to follow on foot, and walking the perimeter of Church Henge gives a clear sense of its scale.
One of the four henges has almost completely disappeared and survives only as a faint mark in the ground, easy to walk past without noticing. The Great Barrow, a large prehistoric mound near the site, has concentric ditches that are only visible when you look closely at the surface of the ground.
The community of curious travelers
AroundUs brings together thousands of curated places, local tips, and hidden gems, enriched daily by 60,000 contributors worldwide.
