The Merry Maidens
A Bronze Age stone circle where nineteen maidens were turned to stone for dancing on the Sabbath, and are said to come alive and dance at midnight.
The Merry Maidens, known in Cornish as Dans Maen (Stone Dance), is one of the most perfectly preserved stone circles in Cornwall, consisting of nineteen granite stones forming a near-perfect circle approximately 24 meters in diameter. Erected during the Bronze Age around 2000 BCE, the site’s true astronomical and ceremonial purposes have been lost to time, but it has become inseparable from a medieval Christian legend that claims nineteen young women were turned to stone as divine punishment for dancing on a Sunday. According to the tale, two nearby standing stones—the Pipers—are the musicians who played for the dance, similarly petrified for their Sabbath-breaking sin.
The most persistent legend associated with the Merry Maidens claims that at midnight, particularly on Midsummer’s Eve or certain pagan festival nights, the stones transform back into young women who dance once more before returning to stone at dawn. Numerous witnesses over the centuries have reported seeing ghostly female figures in white or pale dresses dancing in a circle around the stones, accompanied by the faint sound of music. Some describe seeing the stones themselves appearing to move or sway, while others report hearing laughter, singing, or the sound of bare feet on grass when the site is empty. The phenomenon is most commonly reported during full moons or on traditional Celtic festival dates like Beltane and Samhain.
Beyond the dancing maidens themselves, the site experiences other paranormal activity typical of Cornwall’s ancient stone circles. Visitors frequently report feeling watched, experiencing sudden temperature drops, or sensing a presence among the stones. Some people describe feeling dizzy, disoriented, or experiencing time distortions when inside the circle—entering for what feels like minutes only to discover significant time has passed. The stones are said to be warm to the touch even on cold days, and sensitive individuals report tingling sensations or feelings of energy when touching them. Mysterious lights, orbs, and mists are frequently photographed, and dowsers detect strong energy lines converging at the site. Modern pagans and witches consider the Merry Maidens particularly powerful for ritual work, claiming the stones retain spiritual energy from millennia of ceremonial use. Whether haunted by the ghosts of punished dancers, ancient priestesses, or simply charged with powerful prehistoric energy, the Merry Maidens remains one of Cornwall’s most actively haunted and legendarily mysterious stone circles.