tombs and tumuli

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TTTTOMBSOMBSOMBSOMBS & & & & TTTTUMULIUMULIUMULIUMULI

Cornelius Clifford

Tim Heilman (order #7235817)

TOMBS & TUMULI Fantasy Floor plans

This pack includes detailed plans of four ancient or stone age tombs; a portal tomb or quoit, a long barrow, a large multi-chambered tumuli and a large stone built tomb within an earth mound. Designed for fantasy role playing and war games, includes four floor plans by Cornelius Clifford.

Page Contents 3 A Portal Tomb or Quoit 4 Long Barrow or Passage Tomb 5 Many Chambered Tumulus 6 Large Stone Tomb

First published in 2013 by DreamWorlds

Text and illustrations copyright 2013 Cornelius Clifford

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any way or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the copyright holder.

www . Dream-Worlds . co. uk


A Portal TOMB or Quoit

PORTAL TOMB

This portal tomb or quoit is a very ancient type of burial chamber indeed. Many of them can be seen stripped of their earth mounds by the erosion of the elements over thousands of years. This leaves three or four enormous standing stones, leaning inwards and topped by a massive flat stone cap. Usually the burials and bones have long gone. Portal graves like this one are often seen as communal graves, where the remains of a number of dead people, maybe twenty or more, will have been carefully and reverently laid to rest. The large upright slab of stone blocking the entrance and creating a baffled entry somehow makes entering the darkness within that much harder. A short stone-lined passage leads to the main chamber. In this example there is a modest fire pit, perhaps for making offerings to the ancestors. There are a couple of openings or niches off of this large space (which might be ten or more feet tall) where there are stacks of bones, skulls and the like.

Also known as Dolmen or Portal Dolmen these ancient Neolithic burial chambers are eerie, spooky places. The spirits of the long dead still seem to hover on the edge of the visitors consciousness, calling and whispering from the depths of the ancient past. Dare you enter? And if you do, what will you find there? Piles of bones, or a fell wraith? It is hard to imagine the people who built these edifices, stone age Hillmen perhaps. Did they worship the earth spirits rather than the sky gods? Nobody really knows.

www . Dream-Worlds . co. uk copyright Cornelius Clifford 2013


Long Barrow

LONG BARROW

This long barrow, or passage tomb, is believed to be of a later date than the Portal Tomb, and yet is still of the stone age period. There is the usual baffled entry; maybe this arrangement is to ensure that the living cannot see in and the dead cannot see out! A long stone-lined passage leads to the main chamber. Off of the passage are four chambers, with narrow (and low) entrances restricting entry to someone of modest stature and who has to bend over to enter. These are likely to contain the bones, skulls and skeletons of several of the ancient ones.

The large main chamber was obviously built to house the remains of a great chief or king. The worked stone tomb or alter is clearly of a later date than the main structure. Who put this strange object here, and why? Barrows such as this are, fairly obviously, likely to be the home of a Wight, or Barrow-Wight. In all likelihood the spirit of the long-dead chief or king for whom this place was built and who has his resting place here.



Many Chambered Tumulus

MANY-CHAMBERED TUMULUS

This large structure contains ten distinct stone-lined chambers. There are two entrances, both baffled by large upright stones. Each chamber is the burial place for one or more of the ancestors. There is a fire pit in one chamber, perhaps for burning herbs or incense and making offerings to the old ones.

In another chamber there is a stone alter, obviously much later than the tombs, a sacrificial alter? Or maybe an embalming table? Several of the passages have very narrow entrances, and are almost secret ways. It will be very dark (and scary) in here, and would be very easy to walk past such an entry and not see it. Or to notice the spirit waiting to emerge from it once you have passed



Large stone tomb

LARGE STONE TOMB

This large tomb contains many stone-lined cists and has clearly been used as a communal grave complex for many burials over hundreds of years. There are three adjacent entrances, with stone baffles as is common; to stop the living seeing in and the dead seeing out, perhaps. The entrances, although they are adjacent, are curiously all at the same end of the tomb. The fact that they face north, east and west may be significant, it also begs the question why there is no south entrance. All three entrances lead into the same large, open, stone-lined chamber with a row of rough-hewn stone pillars across the centre, supporting the roof which is made from huge stone slabs. Beyond the pillars the main passage is lined with stone cists, five on each side. Note that there is an eleventh, almost secret, cist leading off of the first cist on the left. The entrance is really well disguised and can only be seen with a good source of light and after climbing into the first cist, over the bones, skull and remains that are still reverently positioned on the floor at the centre of the cist. In fact all of the cists are likely to have bones, skulls or remains of the dead in them. The final cist on the right has a dark low opening at the back of it. This leads into a very ancient tunnel which, after turning to the right, opens out into a small roundish burial chamber. This has the look of the burial place of someone of status and wealth, perhaps a chief or king. Maybe there are burial goods as well as bones here?

At the far end of the main chamber or passage there is a dressed stone alter. This is of a superior type of workmanship than the rest of the tomb. It is also hollow, perhaps there is a secret void within the altar which might contain ceremonial knives and more. Beyond the stone altar there are dark entrances in the corners, which are hard to spot, and lead to tunnels going left and right. Both of these lead to ancient barrow tombs, similar to the type found in normal tumuli. Maybe these four burial chambers represent the first phase of building, then the large, cist-lined chamber a second phase and the entrances and stone altar a third and final stage of development. Maybe the earth mound was extended northwards with each stage? The four dark and eerie chambers beyond the altar are clearly horribly ancient and full of dark foreboding. Are these the tombs of ancient kings or chiefs? Do their spirits linger here? An evil presence, Wights or Liches perhaps. Theres only one way to find out



Large stone tomb



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tombs and tumuli

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passage tomb

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