Countless stones

The countless stones is a motif that appears in English and Welsh folklore. It is associated with various megalithic monuments, including chambered long barrows from the Early Neolithic and the stones circles of the Late Neolithic and Early Bronze Age. The motif holds that an individual attempting to count the number of stones in the monument will be unable to do so.

The earliest textual accounts of the story date from the late sixteenth century, where it is linked to the stone circle of Stonehenge in Wiltshire. Multiple sources from the seventeenth-century also link the story to Stonehenge, although also apply it to The Hurlers in Cornwall and Long Meg and Her Daughters in Cumberland (now Cumbria).

The countless stones motif was the subject of a study by folklorist S. F. Menefee, published in the Folklore journal in 1975, and was part of Leslie Grinsell's catalogue of folkloric motifs associated with prehistoric sites in Britain.

Historical development

Early Modern accounts

The earliest textual reference to the countless stones story comes from Philip Sidney's The 7 Wonders of England, which was written prior to 1586. Sidney related the story when discussing the stone circle of Stonehenge in Wiltshire, commenting "Neere Wilton sweete, huge heapes of stones are found, But so confusde [sic] that neither any eye, Can count them just." The second oldest known account was produced by Richard Carew for his book, The Survey of Cornwall, which was published in 1602 and probably authored in manuscript form between 1590–94. Carew was aware of the tradition at Stonehenge, comparing it with that found at The Hurlers, a group of three stone circles near Liskeard in Cornwall.

A further textual appearance of the story dates from 1604, and can be found in the Scottish poet Alexander Craig's book The Poetical Essays of Alexander Craige Scotobritane.