The Grey Mare and her Colts
Neolithic Chambered Long Barrow
North of Abbotsbury, Dorset   OS Map Ref SY58388706
OS Maps - Landranger 194 (Dorchester & Weymouth), Explorer OL15 (Purbeck and South Dorset)


Grey Mare And Her Colts - Chambered Long Barrow
View of the remaining uprights and collapsed chamber at the southeastern end of the barrow.
The Grey Mare and her Colts is a Neolithic chambered long barrow that stands at a height of 200 metres above sea level around three miles north of Chesil Beach. It is situated on a plateau of land just to southeast of the head of a dry valley whose stream would have flowed down into the River Bride while the stone circle of Kingston Russell stands about half a mile away to the northwest.

Aligned southeast to northwest, the barrow mound is now about 24 metres long, although originally it would have been longer and still survives to a height of about a metre and width of 8 metres at the southeast end behind the chamber. This collapsed burial chamber still has two large uprights in situ, flanked by a smaller standing stone, as well as a stone at either end of the row that now lies fallen (to the left and in the bottom right corner of the picture above). The massive fallen capstone measures over 2 metres long by a metre and a half wide. Antiquarian investigations in the early 19th century recorded many human bones and pieces of pottery.

This area of the country was made famous as Thomas Hardy's Wessex and still has many charming villages and places of interest, however, the nature of the twisty country lanes can sometimes make traveling around here difficult. To get to the Grey Mare, take the road that leads in a northeasterly direction out of Abbotsbury and climbs up onto Abbotsbury Plains. At the top of the hill, the road bears right and shortly afterwards is a turning to the left. Take this turning and then follow the public footpath in a northwesterly direction - after around 500 metres another path leads off to the left. The barrow is on the left of this path a short distance further on.
Grey Mare And Her Colts - Chambered Long Barrow
Front view of the chamber stones.
Grey Mare And Her Colts - Chambered Long BarrowLooking northwards over the uprights and the barrow mound to the left of picture.

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