The _Sacred Enclosure_ has four entrances—south-west, west, north, and east.
The south-west entrance is from _No. 6 Enclosure_. This has rounded walls and portcullis grooves, and is 5 ft. high on either side, 2 ft. wide, and runs through a wall 4 ft. 10 in. thick. On the inside of this entrance are the remains of steps which relic prospectors have destroyed. The floor of the entrance is 4 ft. above the floor of the enclosure.
The western entrance, which leads from _No. 9 Enclosure_, is also rounded, and had portcullis grooves, and its floor was once paved with cement. This entrance is in a very dilapidated condition, owing to trees and creepers.
The north or main entrance to this enclosure is rounded on either side, and has portcullis grooves. It is 2 ft. 10 in. wide, and is directly north of the _Conical Tower_, between which and this entrance the floor is substantially paved with cement, and has cement steps leading down into the enclosure on the west side of the _Conical Tower_.
[Illustration: VISITORS’ LADDER TO SUMMIT OF MAIN WALL, ELLIPTICAL TEMPLE]
[Illustration: THE SMALL CONICAL TOWER, ELLIPTICAL TEMPLE]
The east entrance leads from the _Parallel Passage_, and measurements of it are given in the description of that passage.
The buttresses on either side of the inner side of the eastern entrance have not the appearance of being ancient, unless they had once collapsed and been roughly rebuilt at a much later period.
The eastern section of this enclosure has been cleared of débris down to the level of a yellow granite cement floor. In several places this flooring has been destroyed by roots of both past and present trees of great size. This section appears to have had to absorb all rainfall from the south-east area of the temple, as this enclosure is at a much lower level than the adjoining enclosures, and this may account for the decomposition at some points of the cement floor. The clearing to the cement floor has also been carried round the base of the _Conical Tower_, which now stands upon an almost level floor. The spot where Bent sank the hole through the cement can plainly be seen on the south side of the tower. The clearing also disclosed a granite cement step at the north entrance with a level cement floor on the inner side between it and the north side of the tower. This floor is 2 ft. above the cement floor round the base of the tower, from which raised floor two granite steps between the tower and _The Platform_ lead down to the floor of the western section of the enclosure.