We know a lot about the man who was buried in Liff’s Low but nothing about himself as a person.
As one of the artists in the “Collection of the Artists” project, I worked with children from Biggin School: the school in the village below the hill where Liff’s Low lies. Two pieces of writing came out of your session: this one: a sort of Neolithic lullaby and the story of why he was buried in the Low (that is in a separate entry)
LIFF’S LOW NIGHT CHARM
Do not fear the darkness,
As the firelight dies,
My little horse girl.
Your father is a wolf,
And the night
Holds no fear
For the hunter.
Do not fear the cold,
As the firelight dies,
My little fox boy.
Your mother is a bear,
And the cold,
Is never cold,
Under fur.
Do not fear the whispers,
As the firelight dies,
Our animal children.
Your mother is a bear,
And your father is a wolf.
And there is nothing we cannot face
With a growl
And a roar,
A snarl
And a snap.
Sleep now and do not fear
Neither dark, nor cold, nor voices,
Sleep now
And dream of the morning
And the sun in the dale,
The wind over the hilltop,
And the freedom to run
With the horses of your heart.
Liffs Low barrow itself is on private land, but you can see it from the roadside as you drive south from Biggin along Liffs Road.