Wayland's Smithy nestles on the Oxfordshire Ridgeway, a brisk and pleasant walk from the White Horse at Uffington. Like West Kennet, it has become a favourite with neo-pagan ritual holders as it is out of the way but not too out of the way, and carries the right amount of gravitas. I imagine that there should be some good reason why people should want to conduct ritual in tombs, but an educated guess escapes me at this precise moment.
Wayland's Smithy is around 5500 years old, placing it in the Neolithic. It is somewhat similar to the barrow at Belas Knap, although it has the one accessible chamber at the front rather than a false entrance with side chambers. The current structure was built over a previous one that was smaller. It is a little under 200 feet long and around 50 feet wide at its broadest cross-section.
Wayland was a smith in Scandinavian and Anglo-Saxon mythology. The legend associated with the tomb says that any horse left with coin outside the barrow overnight will be shod in the morning and the coin gone. Personally I feel that the Terry Pratchett version is most likely -- that both horse and coin will be gone, and you probably will see neither again.
| Visit date: | 20/01/2000 |
| Reporter: | Sam Fleming |
| Email: | sam@ravenfamily.org |
| Website: | www.ravenfamily.org/sam |
| Purpose: | To check the place over and say hello. |
| Time since last visit: | Approx 1 year |
| Spoke to Land Spirits: | Yes |
| And they said: | Not very talkative. Miffed with me for having been away for so long. At Uffington Hill Fort it felt like the landowner had changed. |
| Nightlight remains: | Yes |
| Joss sticks: | Yes |
| Fire damage: | Yes - One in the back of the chamber, four fire pits around the outside. |
| Soot damage: | Yes |
| Objects: | Yes - Mainly coins - more than GBP1 in loose change! |
| Flowers: | Yes - Hothouse - a yellow rose. |
| Cigarette ends: | Yes |
| Chalk marks: | Yes - A sort of bindrune looking thing on the inside of the right hand side chamber, probably just graffiti, but very big. I hope to have some photos soon. |
| Action taken: | Removed all rubbish and coins (money to be given to RNLI or Mountain Rescue). |
| Visit date: | 20/06/1999 |
| Reporter: | Catherine Humes |
| Email: | cath@gingerbreadhouse.demon.co.uk |
| Purpose: | Summer solstice |
| Time since last visit: | Approx 1 year |
| Candlewax: | Yes, on the grass and stones. |
| Fire damage: | Yes, there were several fire remains around the barrow. It seemed the remains of campfires, not ritual in purpose [When we last visited there had been seven ritual fires lit round the barrow - Sam] |
| Damaged Lichen: | Yes |
| Objects: | Yes - all seemed to be the remains of flowers and plants. |
| Flowers: | Yes - appeared to be local wildflowers, probably picked along the ridgeway path |
| Disturbed soil: | Yes |
| Left food: | Yes |
| Picnic remains: | Yes |
| Cigarette ends: | Yes |
| Chalk marks: | Yes - a large pentagram in a circle had been drawn on one of the 2 main stones and sigils had been drawn inside the chamber on the walls |
| Action taken: | Picked up all food and other debris, asked children not to climb on the stones and to take their picnic litter with them. |