Julian's Bower or Julian Bower is a name given to

turf maze Historically, a turf maze is a labyrinth made by cutting a convoluted path into a level area of short grass, sod, turf or lawn. Some had names such as Mizmaze, Troy Town, The Walls of Troy, Julian's Bower, or Shepherd's Race. This is the type of m ...

s in several different parts of England. Only one of this name still exists, at

Alkborough Alkborough is a parish of 471 people in 192 households (2021 census) in North Lincolnshire, England, located near the northern end of The Cliff range of hills overlooking Trent Falls, the confluence of the River Trent and the River Ouse. Al ...

North Lincolnshire North Lincolnshire is a Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area with Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough status in Lincolnshire, England. At the 2011 United Kingdom census, 2011 Census, it had a population of 167,446. T ...

. It has also been known by corrupted forms of the name, such as "Gillian's Bore" and "Gilling Bore". The 18th-century

antiquary An antiquarian or antiquary () is an aficionado or student of antiquities or things of the past. More specifically, the term is used for those who study history with particular attention to ancient artefacts, archaeological and historic sit ...

William Stukeley William Stukeley (7 November 1687 – 3 March 1765) was an English antiquarian, physician and Anglican clergyman. A significant influence on the later development of archaeology, he pioneered the scholarly investigation of the prehistoric ...

mentions a "Julian Bower" turf maze at

Horncastle Horncastle is a market town and civil parish in the East Lindsey district in Lincolnshire, England. It is east of Lincoln. Its population was 6,815 at the 2011 census and estimated at 7,123 in 2019. A section of the ancient Roman walls rema ...

Lincolnshire Lincolnshire (), abbreviated ''Lincs'', is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East Midlands and Yorkshire and the Humber regions of England. It is bordered by the East Riding of Yorkshire across the Humber estuary to th ...

, and in nearby

Louth Louth may refer to: Australia *Hundred of Louth, a cadastral unit in South Australia * Louth, New South Wales, a town * Louth Bay, a bay in South Australia ** Louth Bay, South Australia, a town and locality Canada * Louth, Ontario Ireland * Cou ...

there was a "Gelyan Bower", mentioned in accounts of 1554. At

Goathland Goathland is a village and civil parish in the county of North Yorkshire, England. Historically part of the North Riding of Yorkshire, it is in the North York Moors national park due north of Pickering, off the A169 to Whitby. It has a stati ...

North Yorkshire North Yorkshire is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in Northern England.The Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority areas of City of York, York and North Yorkshire (district), North Yorkshire are in Yorkshire and t ...

, there was a "July Park" or "St Julian's" maze. At

Whinfell Forest Whinfell Forest is a small area of woodland in the parish of Brougham, Cumbria, south east of Penrith in Cumbria and just off the A66 road leading to Appleby-in-Westmorland. The forest is a short distance from the Lake District national park an ...

there is a farm called Julian Bower, originally built to support the Keeper. It now lies outside the forest boundary. Some English turf mazes are very similar in their layout to

Scandinavia Scandinavia is a subregion#Europe, subregion of northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. It can sometimes also ...

labyrinth In Greek mythology, the Labyrinth () is an elaborate, confusing structure designed and built by the legendary artificer Daedalus for King Minos of Crete at Knossos. Its function was to hold the Minotaur, the monster eventually killed by the h ...

s, which usually have their paths marked with stones. At Grothornet, near Vartdal in the Sunnmore district of

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

, there is a stone-lined labyrinth called "Den Julianske Borg" ("Julian's Castle"). The name is believed to be derived from Julus, son of

Aeneas In Greco-Roman mythology, Aeneas ( , ; from ) was a Troy, Trojan hero, the son of the Trojan prince Anchises and the Greek goddess Aphrodite (equivalent to the Roman Venus (mythology), Venus). His father was a first cousin of King Priam of Troy ...

Troy Troy (/; ; ) or Ilion (; ) was an ancient city located in present-day Hisarlik, Turkey. It is best known as the setting for the Greek mythology, Greek myth of the Trojan War. The archaeological site is open to the public as a tourist destina ...

, and the word place-name element ''burgh'', meaning "a fortified place", "fort" or "castle". The reasoning behind this etymology is based on the fact that many mazes and labyrinths in Britain were called "Troy", "

Troy Town Many turf mazes in England were named Troy Town, Troy-town or variations on that theme (such as Troy, The City of Troy, Troy's Walls, Troy's Hoy, or The Walls of Troy) presumably because, in popular legend, the walls of the city of Troy were con ...

" or "The Walls of Troy"; similar names, such as "Trojaburg", "Trojburg" or "Trelleborg", were used in Scandinavia. In popular legend, the walls of the city of Troy were constructed in such a complex and confusing way that any enemy who entered them would be unable to find his way out.

Modern History

In recent times it has been maintained by Ken Goy, a volunteer, known for being prolific in its upkeep. For his devotion he was awarded, in 2012, North Lincolnshire best maintained church ground and surrounding area. On a clear day, Emley Moor TV tower (40 miles), the top of

York Minster York Minster, formally the Cathedral and Metropolitical Church of Saint Peter in York, is an Anglicanism, Anglican cathedral in the city of York, North Yorkshire, England. The minster is the seat of the archbishop of York, the second-highest of ...

and the Kilburn White Horse (45 miles) can be seen from Julian's Bower.

External links

W.H.Matthews, ''Mazes and Labyrinths'' (1922)
online version

Jeff Saward's website
Labyrinth SocietyLabyrinth Locator (Veriditas & Labyrinth Society)
{{Authority control English folklore Geoglyphs Mazes

Modern History

See also

Further reading

External links