Re: Who's going to be there this weekend? | Forum

Trethevy Quoit 11

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Who's going to be there this weekend?

StoneGloves Apr 25, 2011 18:11:33

Replying to Sanctuary

I don't think I've ever seen a Portal Tomb. I do know that staying on site doesn't add to clarity. That comes from learning abstract facts and then applying them to a site, or event. I do know that when you find stuff that people will appear out of the woodwork to proclaim you as deluded, mistaken, or worse. I also know that an old gadgee found some very interesting things looking at the shadows cast by Cumbrian circles around the calendar days. Shadows are so ephemeral and not 'scientific'. I also know that stone structures can appear to be unstable for years and then topple or fall, seemingly at random, when there's a deluge or a fast thaw (a stonemason has his ears wide open for the the scrapy rumble that presages collapse and gets out of the way fast). You don't mess with gravity! But where are the measurements of the squircle? I know of an animal called the squirrcodile - found in the Ohio wetlands - quite a shy creature, scampers amongst trees, but with a prehensile tail and a double row of razor-sharp incisors.

tiompan Apr 25, 2011 18:21:53

Replying to StoneGloves

StoneGloves wrote:

I do know that when you find stuff that people will appear out of the woodwork to proclaim you as deluded, mistaken, or worse.

The reactions are usually based on the quality of the evidence . Plenty "stuff " gets found on a regular basis and people can judge for themselves , when it is obviously genuine or the interpretation is reasonable you tend not hear these complaints .

nigelswift Apr 25, 2011 18:30:36

Replying to StoneGloves

"Shadows are so ephemeral and not 'scientific'. "

Oh I dunno, for every solar alignment there's a much more easily measured shadow, and an infinite series of them both before and after the moment of alignment so your options to tell the shadow-time all day or all year are vast. Bet some ancient people did so in some places.

"I also know that stone structures can appear to be unstable for years and then topple or fall"

Yes, the rate of progression can be jerky and unpredictable - climate, sub soil, vibration - it's very hard to be sure what is happening. There has been long term talk of driving a big road past the Rollrights. For a consultancy fee of £10K I'll state that the vibration could de-stabilise them. No-one will have the guts to state otherwise as no-one can know for sure. ;)

tiompan Apr 25, 2011 18:59:55

Replying to StoneGloves

StoneGloves wrote:

I do know that when you find stuff that people will appear out of the woodwork to proclaim you as deluded, mistaken, or worse.

A good example of the relationship between the sun and an ancient monument that can be easily checked and appreciated and has had no suggestions of “delusion , mistakes or worse “ is the "Sun Roll "at Silbury as seen from nearby Gunsight lane (the optimum viewing point is in the area of the Neolithic palisaded enclosure but as it may be in crop , best stick to the lane ) , best seen ,weather permitting around 16 th May , in this case it is a sun set .
Possibly noted by the (prehistoric ) locals /maybe even somebodies ancestor at the time . No reason to suggest anything like solar constructs etc , it’s to be expected , a common occurrence on hills natural or otherwise with the right slope coinciding with the sun set/rise angle and providing a fine natural spectacle , photo opportunity and because it is Silbury and not your local hill there is the added frisson .