The Modern Antiquarian. Stone Circles, Ancient Sites, Neolithic Monuments, Ancient Monuments, Prehistoric Sites, Megalithic MysteriesThe Modern Antiquarian

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faerygirl

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Tarxien (Ancient Temple) — Images (click to view fullsize)

<b>Tarxien</b>Posted by faerygirl<b>Tarxien</b>Posted by faerygirl

Ggantija (Ancient Temple) — Images

<b>Ggantija</b>Posted by faerygirl

Hagar Qim (Ancient Temple) — Images

<b>Hagar Qim</b>Posted by faerygirl<b>Hagar Qim</b>Posted by faerygirl

Mnajdra (Ancient Temple) — Images

<b>Mnajdra</b>Posted by faerygirl

The Longstone of Minchinhampton (Standing Stone / Menhir) — Images

<b>The Longstone of Minchinhampton</b>Posted by faerygirl<b>The Longstone of Minchinhampton</b>Posted by faerygirl

Bryn Cader Faner (Cairn(s)) — Links

CADW: Prehistoric Funerary and Ritual Monuments


This place made the front cover! Oh, the info is quite interesting too :)

Thor Stone (Standing Stone / Menhir) — Folklore

Said in local folklore to have been a thunderbolt cast down from the skies by Thor, God of storms, (Corbett, 1962), and first recorded in the late thirteenth century in the survey of the Chadlington hundred. It is possible that the name Thor Stone is from the name of a nearby village of Taston, recorded as Thorstan in 1278 CE. Close by is a stone cross, placed there by early Christians to abate the evil influences from the Thor Stone

Between these two old monuments was once an elm tree which was a meeting place of the villagers in times gone by (Pumphrey,1990)

Drumelzier Haugh (Standing Stone / Menhir) — Folklore

Local legend connects the stone with the burial place of Merlin the Wizard. Merlin was said to be buried 183m NNW of Drumelzier Church, close to the right bank of the River Tweed. There are no structural remains and none have ever been recorded at the place in question, but it is possible that the tradition may have been originated from the unrecorded descovery of a Bronze Age cist in the area, which links to the Drumelzier Stone.

Tregiffian (Entrance Grave) — Images

<b>Tregiffian</b>Posted by faerygirl

Wayland's Smithy (Long Barrow) — Folklore

Wayland or Volund is the divine smith in Norse, Anglo-Saxon and Germanic. It is said that is you leave your horse tethered there overnight with a silver coin as payment, the horse will have been re-shoed in the morning!

In folklore, Volund and his two brothers steal the "swan-shifts" of three swan maidens then go on to convince the swan maidens to stay in their human forms and become their wives. After a period of 9 years the Swan-Maidens manage to find their swan-shifts and turn back into swans! Interesting as it has been observed that Waylands Smithy aligns to Deneb in the consellation Cygnus (The Swan)

Reference "The Cygnus Mystery" by Andrew Collins

Swallowhead Springs (Sacred Well) — Folklore

Swallowhead Springs has been proposed as a site for worship of the Celtic Goddess Brid or Bridget (Bride in Scotland and Breeshey on the Isle of Man). She presided over fire, art, beauty and is said to be the mother of the Gods. She is often associated with the return of the flow of water in the month of march and therefore the return of life in spring.

(Reference "The Avebury Cycle" by Dames)

Overton Hill (Barrow / Cairn Cemetery) — Miscellaneous

In "Abury: A Temple of the British Druids" 1743, Stuckley observes that Overton Hill is part of a ridge known as Hakpen (Hackpen Hill), a place-name he broke into 2 parts; Hack which he claimed had a Semitic root meaning "Snake" and pen deriving from the ancient British word for head. Snakehead Hill? Perhaps supporting the serpent like shape he observed in the avenues leading from Avebury. He went on to associate this "megalithic serpent" as Kneph (The Graeco-Egyption form of the creator god Khnum) the winged-serpent whos image is replicated the world over in ancient culture.

The Sanctuary (Timber Circle) — Miscellaneous

In "Abury: A Temple of the British Druids" 1743, Stuckley observes that Overton Hill is part of a ridge known as Hakpen (Hackpen Hill), a place-name he broke into 2 parts; Hack which he claimed had a Semitic root meaning "Snake" and pen deriving from the ancient British word for head. Snakehead Hill? Perhaps supporting the serpent like shape he observed in the avenues leading from Avebury. He went on to associate this "megalithic serpent" as Kneph (The Graeco-Egyption form of the creator god Khnum) the winged-serpent whos image is replicated the world over in ancient culture.

Newgrange (Passage Grave) — Folklore

Known anciently as Brugh na Boinne "Place of the Boyne" Newgrange is said to be the tomb of 'three times fifty sons of kings' belonging to the legendary kingdom of Tara (Illustrated guide to Newgrange by O'Kelly) It is also identified as the sidhe of Angus Mac Og, leader of the Tuatha da Danann- the children of the godess Danu/ Dana.
One legend "The Dream of Angus" relates how he fell in love with a swan-maiden after she visited him in a dream. After she agreed to marry him, they fly off to Newgrange in the form of swans, where they lived happily ever after. In Scottish folklore, Angus was married to the goddess Bride, who was herself a swan-maiden.

This is an interesting refernce as Newgrange itself may represent the layout of the constellation Cygnus- The Swan.

Fourknocks (Passage Grave) — Miscellaneous

A study by Murphy and Moore (The Cygnus Enigma using the Sky-globe to observed ancient star alignments) saw that in 3000BC, the " window" created by the mounds entrace chamber would have aligned to the star Deneb in the constellation Cygnus;

"On the night of the midwinter solstice, Deneb marks the location of the sun from the time the sun sets until the time the sun rises plus or minus the time it takes for Deneb to come out into the darkening sky. So observers at either mound (Fourknocks or Newgrange) could track the position of the sun below the horizon using Deneb as their guide"

Newgrange (Passage Grave) — Miscellaneous

If the axial orientation of Newgrange's entrance corridor were to be extended beond where the sun rises over Roughgrange Hill... it brings you at a distance of 15 kilometers to another passage grave called Fourknocks. According to work by Murphy and Moore (The Cygnus Enigma) the "window" created by the entrance at Fourknocks would have aligned with the star Deneb in the constellation Cygnus.

"On the night of the midwinter solstice, Deneb marks the location of the sun from the time the sun sets until the time the sun rises plus or minus the time it takes for Deneb to come out into the darkening sky. So observers at either mound (Fourknocks or Newgrange) could track the position of the sun below the horizon using Deneb as their guide"

Interestingly, Newgrange itself is also observed to have a layout that resembles cygnus, with Deneb falling into its northern recess, gamma cygni positioned at the centre of the stone-lined chamber and beta cygni (the beakstar) located at the mouth of the passageway.

(Reference "The Cygnus Mystery by Andrew Collins)

Mitchell's Fold (Stone Circle) — Images

<b>Mitchell's Fold</b>Posted by faerygirl<b>Mitchell's Fold</b>Posted by faerygirl

The Devil's Arrows (Standing Stones) — Images

<b>The Devil's Arrows</b>Posted by faerygirl<b>The Devil's Arrows</b>Posted by faerygirl

Castlehowe Scar (Stone Circle) — Fieldnotes

Not only is the gate padlocked, but its also very rickety so those of us who are a little on the plumper side of slim are best photographing from the lane. The barbed wire surrounding the wall seems a little mean too. AND the farmer had parked a water butt directly behind the circle, as if to stop you from any kind of pleasure from this pretty little circle. Charming. I considered driving my car through the gate but little Ralf is already a scratched and battered mess so I opted against it.

Midmar Kirk (Stone Circle) — Images

<b>Midmar Kirk</b>Posted by faerygirl

Easter Aquhorthies (Stone Circle) — Images

<b>Easter Aquhorthies</b>Posted by faerygirl

Nine Stones Close (Stone Circle) — Images

<b>Nine Stones Close</b>Posted by faerygirl

Long Meg & Her Daughters (Stone Circle) — Images

<b>Long Meg & Her Daughters</b>Posted by faerygirl<b>Long Meg & Her Daughters</b>Posted by faerygirl<b>Long Meg & Her Daughters</b>Posted by faerygirl<b>Long Meg & Her Daughters</b>Posted by faerygirl

Nine Stones Close (Stone Circle) — Images

<b>Nine Stones Close</b>Posted by faerygirl<b>Nine Stones Close</b>Posted by faerygirl<b>Nine Stones Close</b>Posted by faerygirl<b>Nine Stones Close</b>Posted by faerygirl<b>Nine Stones Close</b>Posted by faerygirl<b>Nine Stones Close</b>Posted by faerygirl<b>Nine Stones Close</b>Posted by faerygirl

Arbor Low (Circle henge) — Images

<b>Arbor Low</b>Posted by faerygirl<b>Arbor Low</b>Posted by faerygirl

The Bridestones (Burial Chamber) — Images

<b>The Bridestones</b>Posted by faerygirl<b>The Bridestones</b>Posted by faerygirl<b>The Bridestones</b>Posted by faerygirl

Gamelands (Stone Circle) — Images

<b>Gamelands</b>Posted by faerygirl<b>Gamelands</b>Posted by faerygirl

Oddendale Cairn I (Cairn(s)) — Images

<b>Oddendale Cairn I</b>Posted by faerygirl

Oddendale (Stone Circle) — Images

<b>Oddendale</b>Posted by faerygirl

Seal Howe (Cairn(s)) — Images

<b>Seal Howe</b>Posted by faerygirl

Gunnerkeld (Stone Circle) — Images

<b>Gunnerkeld</b>Posted by faerygirl<b>Gunnerkeld</b>Posted by faerygirl
Showing 1-50 of 130 posts. Most recent first | Next 50
Hey Ho, here we go...

Geology graduate who grew up in the (barren) West Midlands, did some travelling and then ended up back in sunny Wolverhampton (mostly by default). Got some fab friends who like rocks as much as I do, so we spend lots of our freetime in country roads arguing over dodgy directions to another stone monument.

I'm as interested in the theories behind this stuff as anything else and think that most people are thinking too small. The positioning and alignment of most (if not all) burrows, megaliths, monoliths, bumps, dips and circles show an understanding of energy that we no longer possess. But thats all a bit too deep to get into on here. These trips are pilgrimages for me, in the same way as people visit churches or Mecca (silly modern religions)

I'm a holistic therapist living with the love of my life, Martin, and a lizard named Stan. I LOVE food as long as it never had a face, I'm rather partial to red wine and I'm happy to be alive and able to walk freely through moor, hill and vale finding sacred sites to "power up" and get me through.

Thats about it really...

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