MATLOCK, Derbyshire, U.K. – A single stone stands in Farley Wood in Derbyshire. The Farley Moor stone is six and a half feet tall, the third-tallest stone in the Gritstone Moors in England’s Peak District, and appeared to be a singular monument. But a new report from Forestry England and crew members from the British television series Time Team indicates that the stone was actually part of a ritual complex that saw use for hundreds of years in the Bronze Age, about 3700 years ago.
The excavation crew standing with the Farley Moor standing stone [Time Team]
George Bird, a 24-year-old local archeology enthusiast, had argued that there must have been a larger monument in the area, of which the Farley Moor standing stone was only one part, according to Smithsonian Magazine. His comments led to an investigation by Forestry England, which bore out his suspicions.
“It’s just fantastic now finding out that this has all been confirmed, [that] those peculiar rocks are in fact a larger monument,” said Bird.
The archeologists discovered five other stones nearby, forming a circle, as well as a ceremonial stone platform beside the remaining stone, as reported by the BBC. Notably, the main stone is constructed above a natural spring, a feature that likely held ritual significance.
“What we’ve uncovered is evidence of a much more complex ceremonial landscape, which the original standing stone is part of,” said Lawrence Shaw, lead historic environment adviser for Forestry England. “The stone platform predates the standing stone itself, suggesting continuous ritual use of this site over hundreds of years, strongly linked to the water and the importance it held for Bronze Age communities.”
The site is located near Bentley Brook, a tributary of the River Derwent, within the Peak Region—an area that contains 25 documented archaeological sites like Farley Moor. According to Heritage Daily, experts believe the region may hold even more undiscovered sites.
The Farley Moor standing stone above the natural spring [Time Team]
“The scale of activity that likely existed in that landscape highlights the impact of Bronze Age ritual life far beyond headline sites like Stonehenge,” said Derek Pitman, associate professor of archaeology and anthropology at Bournemouth University. “This project also showcases the value of investigating sites that have been hidden in the nation’s forests for the last few decades and implies a wealth of archaeology still waiting to be explored.”
The excavation is the subject of the latest episode of Time Team, which has been uploaded to the show’s YouTube page. The episode goes deeper into the process of excavating the site and how the archeologists discovered the full extent of the Farley Moor complex.
“Time Team is a British archaeology series watched by millions across the globe,” according to Forestry England. “Currently celebrating its 30th anniversary, the programme launched on the UK’s Channel 4 in 1994, running for 20 series and countless specials that have been exported worldwide.”
Time Team returned in 2021 and has funded over 280 excavations in the U.K., including a recent residency at Sutton Hoo.
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The site will be preserved as though it were a scheduled monument in order to preserve the findings. The excavation team hopes to investigate the area further this summer to examine the newly-uncovered stones further, with the goal of determining the site’s original date of creation and the size of the larger structure.
“We often celebrate our forested landscapes for their natural beauty and ecological significance, yet they also harbour some of England’s most extraordinary historical sites, monuments, and stories,” said Shaw. “The Farley Moor stone circle is one such story and an example of the way the nation’s forests in Forestry England’s care have more to discover than the trees we love. The forests are living archives safeguarding nearly 100,000 known archaeological sites. This is a rich heritage we want to bring alive and connect people to.”
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