The Nine Maidens stone circle, also known as the Seventeen Brothers, is a Bronze Age site located near Belstone in Devon, deceptively consisting of a circle of 16 stones. It is believed it is likely to be a burial cairn, with the stone circle surrounding a burial stone which would have sat in the middle, however folklore and legends have different stories to tell.

One popualr story says that the stones were a group of maidens who dared to dance on the Sabbath and were instantly turned to stone for their punishment. They were fated to dance at noon each day until the end of time. While a twist on this tale says that the stones can be brought to life by the sound of the bells of Belstone church. It is said that if you try to count the stones you will always come up with a different total because the stones won't stand still long enough to be counted.

Whatever you believe, this is just another wonderful part of Dartmoor's rich history that is worth seeing if you are exploring the Moors.

Details for an easy hiking route which takes around 1 hour starting from The Old School Tearoom in Belstone is provided in the link below.