Soulton Long Barrow

01/10/2025

Join us at Soulton Long Barrow on 15th October for the 'Wave of Light'. We will gather from 6.30pm, light a candle and be ready to hold a silence in vigil for all those who are no longer here to do life with us at 7pm.

Please book here, booking is free but means I know how many people are coming along:

https://www.merryntenalach.com/merrynevents

30/09/2025

At the Soulton Long Barrow, where we contemplate the continuity of life, we are delighted by the success of the latest scientific monitoring effort in our surrounding landscape.

This vital work was conducted by the West Midlands Ringing Group, whose team of BTO (British Trust for Ornithology) licensed ringers are dedicated to the welfare and scientific understanding of our native birds.

We are thrilled to report the successful ringing of two healthy Barn Owls that were expertly surveyed and caught in the landscape, right here near the Long Barrow itself.

A Deeper Connection to the Land
The ability of the West Midlands Ringing Group to find and ring these Barn Owls in the open landscape speaks volumes. It confirms that the fields surrounding the Barrow provide the rich, healthy environment these magnificent birds need to thrive, linking the ancient themes of the land to the living circle of nature today.

The tiny, unique metal ring each owl receives is a crucial piece of data. It allows the Ringing Group to track their movements, survival, and longevity, contributing to national efforts to secure the future of this iconic species. It connects the life of an individual bird to the long arc of time, much like the Barrow itself connects us to our ancestors.

The Full Avian Family: Little Owls and Tawny Owls
The West Midlands Ringing Group also logged important sightings of two other native owl species on the estate: the wise Tawny Owl and the charming Little Owl!

Logging the locations of all three species is an essential contribution to BTO conservation science. The data helps us:

Understand Distribution: Seeing where they hunt and roost informs how we approach land management in this special space.

Support Life: Knowing that our landscape supports a diverse, healthy population of owls—creatures of the night and symbols of wisdom—brings a profound sense of peace and rightness to this ritual landscape.

We extend our sincere thanks to the West Midlands Ringing Group for bringing this scientific insight to our corner of Shropshire, deepening our connection to the natural world that embraces the Barrow.

29/09/2025

Save the date 📅 !

"By foul play, as thou say'st, were we heav'd thence, / But blessedly..."

​Join us as Prospero recounts his exile and seeks revenge in Shakespeare's magical final play, The Tempest.

​Save the Date: December 12 & 13.

Tickets soon!

Image credit: Byrga Geniht - original 1589s wood cut.

29/09/2025

Merryn here...

Writing is a huge passion of mine and I haven't arrived at my Substack pages for a while, I accidentally took a hiatus but this is a mighty way to sink back in and it's all about the land that the barrow is on, the land that I adore.

You're welcome to take a read.

All of my writing is available for free but you can subscribe so that you receive it directly to your inbox when I release something new or, if you feel super passionate about supporting my writing and the work I do, you can consider a paid subscription.

With love,

Merryn

https://thisismerryntenalach.substack.com/p/soulton-long-barrow-coexistence-and

22/09/2025

Today is the equinox! 🍂 This is the astronomical start of autumn in the Northern Hemisphere, marking the point where the length of day and night are nearly equal.

Here in Soulton Barrow, we're welcoming the crisp air and changing colors.

What's your favorite thing about autumn?

18/09/2025

Imagine this…On Monday 22nd September (7-8pm)

You arrive at the holding land of Soulton Long Barrow and step gently through the gate. The air is hushed, touched with birdsong and the whisper of the fields stretching around you. Merryn, guardian of the barrow, welcomes you with warmth, guiding you slowly towards the great chamber. Each step feels like a crossing, from the noise of the everyday into the stillness of the sacred.

You pass into the stone-built passage, candlelight guiding your way. The earth holds you close, cool walls breathing an ancient calm. As you find your place in the circle, the sound bowls wait, crystalline and shimmering in the low light, ready to weave their song.

The first note begins, a pure tone that rises and expands, spiralling through the chamber like water flowing over stone. You feel it move through you, vibration settling into your bones, loosening what you no longer need to hold. The bowls sing together, a chorus of resonance, opening doors of rest and renewal within you.

Here, time dissolves. The walls of the barrow carry the sound, mingling with silence, carrying you deeper into yourself and further into connection with all that is. When the sound fades, you rest in stillness, heart eased, body softened, spirit restored.

This is not just meditation, it is a remembering, of sound, of stone, of self.

✨ Crystal Sound Bowl Meditation at Soulton Long Barrow ✨
A sanctuary of earth, echo, and renewal.

Booking can be made via the link in on Merryn’s website www.merryntenalach.com/merrynevents

09/09/2025

Fun community walk setting of from Soulton... all welcome!

06/09/2025

NEW PRICING POLICY - Secure your families niche

Families can now reserve a niche with a fixed deposit, with the balance only payable when the niche is required.

We hope this policy offers both peace of mind and flexibility.

If you’d like to explore reserving a niche for the future, please email us, and we’ll be happy to arrange a meeting at the barrow.

Contact: info@sacredstones.co.uk
NB Terms & Conditions Apply

04/09/2025

Merryn Tenalach will be co-hosting an event at the Long Barrow on Monday the 22nd of September.

For details please see the link below. Tickets must be purchased before the event via Merryn's website.

Join us for an unforgettable experience of deep relaxation within Soulton Long Barrow's chambers on the Autumn Equinox to support your shift into Autumn.

22/08/2025

We shall not cease from exploration
And the end of all our exploring
Will be to arrive where we started
And know the place for the first time.

—T.S. Eliot, from “Little Gidding,” Four Quartets

22/08/2025

An update from the birds surveys:

A busy session this morning. Very varied and some new species for the site which was nice.

The totals were:
2 Willow warbler
4 & 1 retrap Long-tailed tit
5 Chiffchaff
13 Whitethroat
1 Lesser Whitethroat
6 Reed bunting
2 Linnet
4 Blue tit
2 Blackbird
1 Greenfinch
2 Goldfinch
2 Blackcap
1 Sedge Warbler
2 Wren
1 Robin
1 Redstart

12/08/2025

"And this our life exempt from public haunt
Finds tongues in trees, books in the running brooks,
Sermons in stones and good in every thing.
I would not change it."

A drone flew over the famous Dancing Pavement at Soulton today, capturing the first-ever bird's-eye view of this incredible artwork! The pavement holds a Shakespearean dance notation and a hidden history of Renaissance mathematics that lasted through the Victorian era.

At Soulton this knowlege was all crucially protected by Hannah Deakin, a lost mathematical genius who, as a woman unable to be admitted to a university, did her work decades before it was recorded in academic records.

This historic discovery is all for the upcoming Byrga Geniht exhibition, which will explore how this art draws on classical traditions of math and dance in a truly profound and uplifting way.

Get yourselves to this show to see who this also link o the coronation rite: https://www.theminories.org/event/numbers-time-space