The Old Stones


Book Description

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.




Exploring Avebury


Book Description

Avebury in Wiltshire is best known as the world's largest stone circle, but surrounding it is a wealth of ancient monuments. Captivated by its unique atmosphere, many visitors form a personal, often spiritual, connection to Avebury and its 'sacred landscape'. What was it that first attracted people to the Avebury area more than 5,000 years ago?Beautifully illustrated with over 400 photographs, maps and diagrams, Exploring Avebury invites us on a journey of discovery. For the first time the importance of water, light and sound is revealed, and we begin to see Avebury through the eyes of those who built it.




The Avebury Cycle


Book Description

"Avebury parish in Wiltshire contains the most amazing collection of Stone Age monuments to be found anywhere in the world. Taking into account recent discoveries, this new edition of Michael Dames's acclaimed study explores the mystery of the Avebury monuments and reveals their collective purpose. Making skillful use of archaeology, ethnography, and folklore, Dames argues that the monuments were key elements in the worship of the Great Goddess, each representing a different aspect of the annual fertility cycle corresponding to the chronological year"--Back cover.




Megalithomania


Book Description

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.




The Fight for Beauty


Book Description

We live in a world where the drive for economic growth is crowding out everything that can’t be given a monetary value. We’re stuck on a treadmill where only the material things in life gain traction and it’s getting harder to find space for the things that really matter but money can’t buy, including our future. Fiona Reynolds proposes a solution that is at once radical and simple – to inspire us through the beauty of the world around us. Delving into our past, examining landscapes, nature, farming and urbanisation, she shows how ideas about beauty have arisen and evolved, been shaped by public policy, been knocked back and inched forward until they arrived lost in the economically-driven spirit of today. A passionate, polemical call to arms, The Fight for Beauty presents an alternative path forward: one that, if adopted, could take us all to a better future.




EXPLORING THE UNKNOWN


Book Description

Welcome to "Exploring the Unknown: Mapping Ancient Europe's Secrets" In the annals of history, there exists a tapestry woven with threads of exploration and discovery, where intrepid adventurers embarked on perilous journeys to chart the uncharted territories of the ancient world. Among these brave souls were the cartographers and explorers of Europe, whose quest for knowledge and adventure shaped the course of history and redefined the boundaries of the known world.







The Landscape Vision of Paul Nash


Book Description

"Roger Cardinal surveys the full range of Nash's images, from the ravaged Flanders landscapes of World War I to the spectacular aerial battles of World War II and the meditative late oils ... The essay is illustrated throughout with Nash's paintings, watercolours and ... photography; it draws on Nash's own writings ... to explain Nash in his own terms ... With 70 illustrations, 27 in full colour"--Back cover.




English Heritage Book of Avebury


Book Description

This is an illustrated survey of one of Britain's most important archaeological sites. As well as the Avebury stone circle, it includes other important neolithic monuments: the Great Henge; East and West Kennet Long Barrows; the Sanctuary and the Avenue; and Silbury Hill.




Landscape Biographies


Book Description

Explores the long and complex histories of landscapes from personal, social and cultural perspectives.