Years ago in the 90's I was reading an article about the Sussex Areological Society and how in a field they'd discovered Roman remains that had been an open shrine to Minerva (Athene to the Greeks). If I remember correctly, the site of a shrine would have been carefully chosen according to the lay of the land, the trees and vegetation that grew there, and other factors, possibly laylines. Travellers going near the shrine would detour and offer some fruits or flowers, or incense, and go on their way.
As it wasn't that far from where I lived and as the coordinates were given and as I had a hand held Garmin GPS, I thought I'd go and investigate and ponder on that all those years ago people that went to the spot to offer their resects. It was in the middle of a field roughly half way between Stanmer and Westmeston a few miles outside Brighton on the Downs.
It was indeed in the middle of a field but to my surprise the actual site itself was a clump of trees with long and short grass and oddly with no gorse which grows everywhere on the Downs. In the warm sunshine I found a place to sit with my back against a tree and had my coffee and sandwiches. Fortunately the field was between crops. Whilst sitting there I thought to myself this is a really really peaceful spot with an exceptional feeling of calm and tranquility so much so I dozed off for about half an hour.
Then there's the opposite. Being a window cleaner there's some windows I clean at night. I don't do early morning - too many druggies and night clubbers off their nuts on booze and or drugs or both. One place I do is the 2 story back of a posh Hair Salon. It's along a 10 or 12ft wide road called Orange Row. In winter time especially the place gives me the creeps.
As an aside, I do the front as well. (It's along Gardner St then I do the backs along Orange Row.) The shop is always locked up, and padlocked, with genuine 19th Century grills over the main window and the only entrance, the front door. All the windows have internal grills as well. One night 3 or 4 years ago while doing the back I noticed a person looking out the 1st floor window and thought that's odd, as the place is locked shut as I just cleaned the front upper windows. A few seconds later the person had gone. I text'd the owner and he drove out to check no one was locked inside which he very much doubted. I waited out the front for him as he didn't live far away. When he arrived he said to come inside and check with him in case anyone had broken in which was highly unlikely as what would they steal? Hair dryers? We checked all four floors, basement, ground, 1st and 2nd. No one. He didn't dispute what I saw, which I thought odd, and I have no rational explanation. I saw what I saw. He told me to keep it to myself though and not mention it to any staff which made me think maybe........
Going back to the small roadway, Orange Row. I always get a very bad feeling along there. It doesn't worry me unduly. It's just not nice and I find myself constantly looking around even in summer. One winters evening a group of people appeared at the north end of the roadway, it runs basically north to south or south to north, and walked towards me. There was a tall man in a black cape, Victorian clothing and a Victorian hat and about 20 people following him. Being nosey and anything but shy, I stopped him and asked the obvious. It was a ghost tour. I expressed my surprise. He said along towards one end of Orange Row where it turns a 90 degree bend south of me, about 100 yards from where I was, in the 16th, 17th and part way into the 18th Century there had been a gallows as at that time it was way outside the town boundary. The path as it then was, was known as Black Lands, on account not only of the gallows but the Black Thorn trees that grew there, and was renamed during early Victorian times To Orange Row when cheap poorly built houses were built which rapidly became slums as only the very poor lived there. He also said that those that had been hung, mainly for smuggling, were buried nearby but the actual places were never marked or if they were, it would be with a simple small wooden cross which wouldn't last long. When the small lock up industrial units were built along the western side of Orange Row, apparently workmen did find some remains which oddly enough I vaguely remember reading about in the local rag about 20 or even up to maybe 30 years ago. I did do a web search but it turned up nothing.
Weeks later when I saw the shop owner I said about the gallows, etc, and he said, yes, I know and he said again not to mention any of it to the staff. I asked him again about the person (?) I saw and he said would you go in there on your own at night and then he said, I have, and never again and that's why two people always lock up the premises after all the other stylists and staff have gone. I wanted to ask more. One day I will.
