Today’s Object of the Week is a small circle of five stones standing in a remote location.

FOR today’s object, we venture a a few miles north – but several centuries back in time.

Duddo Five Stones is a stone circle near the village of Duddo in north Northumberland – a spot they have occupied for around 4,000 years.

The Early Bronze Age stones stand upon a low, grassy hill, covering an area of ten metres.

The tallest stone is 2.3 metres high and, according to Garry Hogg in his book Odd Aspects of England, has been likened to “a clenched fist rising menacingly out of the rough turf”.

The other stones vary in size from 1.5 metres to 2.1 metres and have been described as looking like “a group of giant rotting teeth”.

There were originally seven standing stones at the site, but the other two were lost in about1850.

During excavations in the 1890s and early 1900s two holes were uncovered indicating where the other two had stood and some bones and charcoal were found.is said to be aligned with the Winter solstice.

Their original purpose, as with many monument of this era, is uncertain – but it’s possible the stones were arranged to be aligned with the Winter solstice

The site is shown as ‘Duddo Four Stones’ on the Ordnance Survey 1:25000 map – even though there are in fact five uprights in the circle.

The OS seem to have kept the descriptive 19th century name of the site but the re-erection of a fallen stone in 1903 means the circle is now more properly referred to as ‘Duddo Five Stones’.

Over the centuries The Duddo Stones, which are formed of soft sandstone, have been highly eroded with deep with deep water-cut channels running down their faces – that’s what 4,000 years of Northumberland rain and wind can do!

The Journal of Antiquities says these grooves, which have created some unusual textures on the stones’ surfaces, have led to locals creating some alternative names over the years – including ‘The Women’ and ‘The Seven Turnip Pickers’.

The site of the Duddo Stones offers panoramic views of the Cheviot Hills and the Scottish border is only six miles away.

The circle is accessible via the B5364 road, through a gate and up a path. The stones are on private land with no formal right of way, but the landowner has cleared a permissive path across the field to the stones.

Reviewers on the Tripadviser site describe a visit to the remote stones as “a bit of a hike” but well worth a visit. One reviewer wrote: “A perfect little walk up from the road, nobody about – what England ought to be.”

Another said: “The stones are very atmospheric and the views are spectacular,” while another reviewer added: “Glorious countryside surrounds the stones so the walk up to them is worth the while if nothing else. They are definitely worth a visit.”

The circle is in the ownership of English Heritage.