For the first time, visitors are invited to explore the archaeological excavation at Castilly Henge – a major project targeting important questions about the character, date and potential later reuse of this unique prehistoric ritual site.

The project is a collaboration between Historic England, the Cornwall Archaeological Society and the Cornwall Heritage Trust. 

Location: Castilly Henge, Castle Hill, Lanivet, Bodmin PL30 5HX
Date: Saturday 11^th October
Time: 11am–3pm

Price: Free

You don’t need to be members and there’s no need to book. Just come along and enjoy!

Transport and parking

Limited parking will be available in the layby at the base of the site.

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If this is full, vehicles can be parked at Lanivet Parish Community Centre, where there will be a park and ride minibus shuttle service in operation.

Address: One For All, Lanivet Parish Community Centre, Carters Parc, Rectory Rd, Lanivet, Bodmin, PL30 5HG
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Leaving times from Lanivet… 10.30am, 11am, 11.30am, 12noon, 12.30pm and 1pm

Leaving times from Castilly Henge… 10.45am, 11.15am, 11.45am, 12.15pm, 12.45pm, 1.45pm, 2.15pm, 2.45pm and 3.15pm

If you wish to use public transport, the Number 26 bus from St Austell to Bodmin stops at the Community Centre opposite the car park. From here, you can board the minibus shuttle service to reach the site.

About the event

Located just off the A30 near Bodmin, Castilly Henge is believed to have been built during the late Neolithic period (about 3000 to 2500 BCE). It is a substantial oval earthwork with an external bank and internal ditch, which would have formed an amphitheatre-like setting for gatherings and ritual activities. Its significance continued into the Early Bronze Age (c.2400-1500 BCE) when several high-status burial mounds or barrows were built close by.

Previous researchers have suggested that the site might have been used as a medieval open-air theatre known as a plen-an-gwari and then as a battery during the English Civil War.

The dig has been informed by aerial, earthwork and geophysical surveys undertaken by Historic England’s Archaeological Investigation Team as part of a previous project in 2022. This found traces of a now-removed possible stone circle in the middle of the henge. Not all henges contain stone circles, and there is only one other known to survive in Cornwall.

The Open Day is your chance to have never-before-seen access and insight into this special place with activities including…

• See the archaeology which has been uncovered in the trenches
• Meet the volunteers and archaeologists who have been working at the site
• Explore the site with Dr Olaf Bayer, Senior Archaeological Investigator at Historic England
• Experience the ancient art of flint knapping with Devon and Cornwall Bushcraft
• Create a cyanotype print with Cornwall-based contemporary artist, Robin James Sullivan, and add it to our large-scale willow stone sculptures, similar to those that may have been present at Castilly Henge during the Neolithic period
• Build your own stone circle to take home
• Listen to stories of Neolithic life with Multivax
• Learn more about Cornwall Archaeological Society
• Get a taste of historic food with Cornwall Heritage Trust’s Countryside Rangers

The excavation is funded and directed by Historic England. This Open Day and associated outreach activities have been made possible by a £42,990 grant from The National Lottery Heritage Fund to Cornwall Archaeological Society and a £10,000 grant from Historic England.

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