Many years ago in the Iron Age. Although entrance graves from the neolithic/bronze ag

Entrance graves are found in close association with simple and cist cairns. A contemporary association also exists between entrance graves and menhirs. Though not uncommon in Scilly entrance graves are rare in England. These monuments exhibit some diversity in their form. A menhir/long stone is a deliberately set upright stone and serves as a ritual or burial monument.

Entrance graves have very restricted distribution within the British isles. In England they are confined to the isles of Scilly and west penwith in Cornwall. Further afield they have been recorded in the Tramore area of south east Ireland and lesser numbers of vaguely comparable monuments are known in the channel islands and Brittany. Entrance graves are scattered over much of Scilly though there are particularly large concentrations on Samson, gugh and the south east edge of St Mary’s most are set along ridges, relatively level gently sloping downs or on hill summits, in some cases they are near to ancient sea cliffs and a few are known the bottom of slopes and close to the modern shoreline.

Menhirs in Scilly range in height from1.5 to 2.4m.

Contemporary associations exist between hut circles and  entrance graves and cists so are these the graves of resident/indigenous scillonians or are they the memorials of people who do not live on the islands but who came here to be buried in this ‘place at the edge of the earth’ High Kings’ ‘people of high honour, stature or religious standing’ Another final resting place ‘in the west nearest the setting sun and the edge of the world would have been in West Cornwall mayhap for the internment of those not high or wealthy enough to afford the carriage to Scilly.

Evidence hA BEEN found of a goodly sized population on Scilly but not of there being a profitable or worthwhile agricultural or manufacturing industries  to generate an income and trading economy with other settlements outside the islands with one exception; the burial of the dead?