Torhouse Stone Circle, Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland

I don’t think I had even realised that there were standing stones in south west Scotland, which was daft of me because there must have been quite a lot of travelling to and fro between that part of Scotland and Ireland, even way back in the times when such stone monuments were being built.

So I was surprised to see stones in a field right next to the road we were driving along. It was the Torhouse Stone Circle, a bronze age monument. We stopped to have a closer look, and the sheep that we had disturbed in the field scattered and pushed themselves back into the neighbouring field.
Torrhouse stone circle
On the other side of the road there are just three stones and some broken bits standing in a field. The stones are nowhere near as large as the ones in Orkney, but they’re still atmospheric and intriguing and these ones have the added attraction that you’ll probably have them all to yourself when you visit them, unlike those in more touristy areas. I like the lollipop shaped tree in the distance.

Torrhouse  stone circle + lollipop tree

5 thoughts on “Torhouse Stone Circle, Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland

  1. As always, it’s fascinating to consider the history and purpose of these sites, assembled with so much effort and care so long ago.

    I sometimes wonder what purposes will be assigned to some of our edifices when they are re-discovered thousands of years hence?

    • Valerie,

      I would love to know what these structures were for, I suppose part of their allure is the mystery of it all.
      Around this area it seems that buildings often hardly last 40 years or so, even buildings I can clearly remember being built have been ripped down. Mind you they were not things of beauty.

  2. The tree and the sheep! Love that photo, Katrina, with all that history and mystery sandwiched between two such familiar elements of nature.

    • Stefanie,
      Yes the field is right by the road and there’s a gate leading into it so you can go in and give them a hug or whatever – I tried doing a ‘Clare’ from Outlander but I didn’t fall into any historical portal whisking me back 3 or 4 hundred years! In Scotland we have the ‘right to roam’ so there is really no such thing as private land, but of course if you do walk on farmland you should be careful and not do any damage – or upset livestock.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *