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Re: Britain's Ancient Capital: Secrets Of Orkney
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tiompan wrote:
Annexus Quam wrote:
Let me ask you one more thing, what's the latest on henge orientations? (not wanting to open a can of worms, as surely this has been discussed here before). Has this been done extensively and/or published? With no solstice / equinoctial moons, it seems there is no general pattern, intention or common denominator? Matter settled for you then?


Not sure it has been discussed here before although I may alluded to it .
Afaik there is nothing published on the orientations of henges and their subsequent astro associations .
It's the old story of DIY .
Cos you won't get it on Google .

I looked at 62 of those with the clearest entrance orientations and they were right round the horizon , clock , even facing the area of the horizon that is often avoided i.e. 340 -25 degrees , but the surprise was that 25% faced 320-360 with the majority of these the most northerly ,and the biggest percentage of any group of 40 degree windows .
For the windows 200-240 and 280-320 a very broad one for each of the solstice sunsets provided just one in each . It's almost as if they are avoiding them . 9% between 260-280 with 3 facing due west .
Hope that helps .


Brilliant stuff George.

Did you look at Thornborough?
I'd be keen to know what you make of the claimed orientations below.
I think the paper (2006) is available on academia.

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Now a new study recently completed by Dr Jan Harding, Senior Lecturer in Archaeology at Newcastle University, provides important new information..

.."This study", reports Dr Harding, "provides detailed insights into Neolithic religion and the values placed on favoured celestial phenomena. The same objects in the sky are being picked out as important for a period of around 1500 years ~ a length of time equivalent to that between the end of Roman Britain and the present day..

One of the earliest monuments, a giant elongated enclosure or cursus, about half of which has been destroyed by quarrying, was most likely built between 3500 BC and 3000 BC. This appears to have been deliberately orientated towards the midsummer solstice sunrise, to the east, and towards the setting of the three stars which make up the well known constellation of Orion's Belt, to the west. This early monument was replaced after 3000 BC by three giant circular earthwork enclosures or henges, each around 240 metres in diameter. All three henges are interrupted by a pair of entrances, all on a shared axis and aligned on the midwinter solstice sunrise. The entrances also frame the rising of Sirius, the sky's brightest star, and again, the associated constellation of Orion's Belt.
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Evergreen Dazed
Posted by Evergreen Dazed
29th January 2017ce
18:12

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Re: Britain's Ancient Capital: Secrets Of Orkney (tiompan)

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Re: Britain's Ancient Capital: Secrets Of Orkney (tiompan)

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