Author : Chris Barber
Publisher : Amberley Publishing Limited
Page : 274 pages
File Size : 21,49 MB
Release : 2017-09-15
Category : Social Science
ISBN : 1445674017
The ancient standing stones, stone circles and burial chambers of Wales - remarkable feats of construction that are surrounded by legend.
Author : Lai Ngan Corio
Publisher : Random House
Page : 182 pages
File Size : 49,88 MB
Release : 2003
Category : England
ISBN : 0224064649
David Corio has systematically photographed the megalithic sites ofEngland and Wales with the eye of a great landscape photographeras well as with the passion of an explorer in the ruins of an ancientculture. These photographs go to the heart of prehistoric Englandand reveal a profound sense of'place'. The sites are revealed withall the beauty that invited Romantic speculation from theseventeenth century onwards as well as the encroaching modemworld of distant urban skylines and protective barriers. Lai Ngan'stext distils the mythical narratives that arose around theseextraordinary structures and places as well as pointing to the recentastronomical and mathematical research which suggests theirremarkable function in the prehistoric calendar. The photographspoint to the beginning of architecture itself in Britain, with thesuggestion of both sacred and secular function, layered in thefabulous tales of popular imagination.
Author : Andy Burnham
Publisher : Watkins Media Limited
Page : 709 pages
File Size : 35,74 MB
Release : 2018-09-18
Category : Travel
ISBN : 1786782030
Winner of Current Archaeology’s Book of the Year Discover the iconic standing stones and prehistoric sites of England, Wales, Scotland, and Ireland—this comprehensive, coffee table travel guide features over 750 must-see destinations, with maps and color photographs The ultimate insiders’ guide, The Old Stones gives unparalleled insight into where to find prehistoric sites and how to understand them, by drawing on the knowledge, expertise and passion of the archaeologists, theorists, photographers and stones aficionados who contribute to the world’s biggest megalithic website—the Megalithic Portal. Including over 30 maps and site plans and hundreds of color photographs, it also contains scores of articles by a wide range of contributors—from archaeologists and archaeoastronomers to dowsers and geomancers—that will change the way you see these amazing survivals from our distant past. Locate over 1,000 of Britain and Ireland’s most atmospheric prehistoric places, from recently discovered moorland circles to standing stones hidden in housing estates. Discover which sites could align with celestial bodies or horizon landmarks. Explore acoustic, color, and shadow theory to get inside the minds of the Neolithic and Bronze Age people who created these extraordinary places. Find out which sites have the most spectacular views, which are the best for getting away from it all and which have been immortalized in music. And don't forget to visit the Megalithic Portal website and get involved by posting your discoveries online. All royalties from this book go to support the running of the Megalithic Portal: www.megalithic.com.
Author : Rupert Soskin
Publisher :
Page : 202 pages
File Size : 39,57 MB
Release : 2009
Category : History
ISBN :
Ireland.
Author : Alasdair Whittle
Publisher : Oxbow Books
Page : 541 pages
File Size : 47,39 MB
Release : 2017-02-20
Category : Social Science
ISBN : 1785705423
This volume explores the landscape settings of megalithic chambered monuments in Wales. Set against a broader theoretical discussion on the significance of the landscape, the authors consider the role of visual landscapes in prehistory, meanings attached to the landscape, and the values and beliefs invested in it. Wales is rich in Neolithic monuments, but the general absence of certain classic monumental forms found in the rest of Britain and Ireland, such as causewayed enclosures, henges, and cursus monuments, seems to have marginalized the Welsh record from many wider discussions on the Neolithic. Instead of seeing Wales as an area which lacks many of these 'classic' components, Cummings and Whittle argue that Wales has its own unique and individual Neolithic which is simply different from the Neolithic found further to the east. It is suggested that this difference may relate to an essentially mobile existence, with strong links back to the Mesolithic period. The authors present three detailed case studies, examining the settings of sites in southwest, northwest and southeast Wales. They outline the history of research for each region, including the previous classification of the monuments and any excavations, and describe the specific landscape settings of the monuments. They assess the significance of a variety of landscape features which would have been visible from the monuments, in particular emphasizing the mythological and symbolic significance of the sea, rivers and mountains. An illustrated inventory of sites completes the volume.
Author : Graham Phillips
Publisher : Simon and Schuster
Page : 366 pages
File Size : 23,65 MB
Release : 2019-06-18
Category : Body, Mind & Spirit
ISBN : 1591432987
Reveals how Stonehenge was an extraordinary astronomical calendar used in the cultivation of ingredients for long-forgotten botanical cures • Explores how Stonehenge and other stone circles were ancient healing sanctuaries and celestial calculators for the preparation of natural medicines • Explains how the megalithic priesthood--and their successors, the Druids--developed astonishing memory techniques to preserve knowledge over generations • Draws upon the very latest discoveries from recent archaeological excavations and overlooked historical source material Stonehenge is just one of thousands of stone circles erected throughout Britain and Ireland for over three millennia from 3,000 BC on. How did this building tradition survive for so long, over such a large area and with such complexity and uniformity, when the people of the British Isles lived in separate, isolated communities and left no evidence of a central leadership or obvious communication network? Graham Phillips argues that these stone circles are evidence of an astonishing system of healthcare and preservation of ancient medical knowledge that held together a society scattered across the British Isles. With stones aligned to the sun, moon, and certain stars, these ancient monuments enabled the precise timings necessary for the cultivation of medicinal plants. He explains how the megalithic priesthood possessed medical knowledge well beyond their time and may even have discovered a cure for cancer. Furthermore, because they had no form of writing, the megalithic people developed phenomenal memory techniques to preserve their knowledge over many generations, resulting in a class of wisdomkeepers that were not only healers but the living libraries of their culture. Drawing upon the latest discoveries from recent archaeological excavations and overlooked historical source material, Phillips reveals that the megalithic culture survived far longer than previously thought and that the people who held it together were an enigmatic shamanic sect ultimately called the Druids. Uncovering the secrets of ancient megalithic culture and the purpose of their enigmatic stone circles, Phillips contends that all the evidence has now been gathered to unlock the secrets encoded in the stones--and perhaps discover remedies for diseases still uncured by modern medicine today.
Author : John Michell
Publisher : Ingram
Page : 165 pages
File Size : 10,87 MB
Release : 2007-04-03
Category : Menhirs
ISBN : 9781906069032
A feast of extraordinary theories and personalities centred around the mysterious standing stones of antiquity. John Michell tells the incredible story of the amazing reactions, ancient and modern, to these prehistoric relics, whether astronomical, legendary, mystical or visionary.
Author : Vicki Cummings
Publisher : Windgather Press
Page : 320 pages
File Size : 14,22 MB
Release : 2021-11-30
Category : History
ISBN : 1911188461
Dolmens are iconic international monumental constructions which represent the first megalithic architecture (after menhirs) in north-west Europe. These monuments are characterised by an enormous capstone balanced on top of smaller uprights. However, previous investigations of these extraordinary monuments have focussed on three main areas of debate. First, typology has been a dominant feature of discussion, particularly the position of dolmens in the ordering of chambered tombs. Second, attention has been placed not on how they were built but how they were used. Finally much debate has centred on their visual appearance (whether they were covered by mounds or cairns). This book provides a reappraisal of the dolmen as an architectural entity and provides an alternative perspective on function. This is achieved through a re-theorising of the nature of megalithic architecture grounded in the results of a new research/fieldwork project covering Britain, Ireland and Scandinavia. It is argued that instead of understanding dolmen simply as chambered tombs these were multi-faceted monuments whose construction was as much to do with enchantment and captivation as it was with containing the dead. Consequently, the presence of human remains within dolmens is also critically evaluated and a new interpretation offered.
Author : Glyn Edmund Daniel
Publisher : CUP Archive
Page : 314 pages
File Size : 15,32 MB
Release : 1950
Category : England
ISBN :
Author : Aubrey Burl
Publisher : Yale University Press
Page : 316 pages
File Size : 20,89 MB
Release : 1993-01-01
Category : History
ISBN : 9780300055757
This book discusses the lines of standing stones that until now have been the neglected wonders of prehistoric Europe, rows that were foci of rituals in Britain, Ireland and Brittany for over two thousand years. Places such as Carnac in Brittany and Callanish in the Hebrides are visited by many visitors each year, but before now there has been no book that seriously explains the history, significance and background to these impressive sites. Aubrey Burl shows that the settings vary from pairs of isolated stones in the far south-west of Ireland to networks of long lines in Scotland, Dartmoor and Brittany, and describes the types in a sequence of architectural chapters that stress the increasing social and commercial connections between regions hundred of miles apart. He uses information from a wide variety of sources - excavation reports, megalithic art, astronomical analyses and legends - to provide explanations of why the rows were erected, when, and what they may have been used for.
