uffington horse and the sun

Uffington White Horse 29

Image by ginger tt

Rhiannon Aug 18, 2017 12:23:52

I know we've probably argued this enough now, but I just want to say...

In Josh Pollard's Antiquity paper, he says "When observed from Dragon Hill at midwinter, a distinctive effect is created, whereby the sun rises immediately behind the horse and appears to roll just above its body, staying low to the horizon due to the truncation of the lower part of its arc by the high rise of the immediate topography."

But when you look at his very own diagram and photo of this, the midwinter sun isn't rising behind the horse at all.

Considering this is essentially the only hard evidence brought out to support a firm connection to all the scandinavian sun horse stuff in the rest of the paper, it's not a very firm footing.

My name has magic horse story connections. But seemingly no sun connections. And that mythology's from this country, not scandinavia. So perhaps I should develop my own theory about the horse. Would it be any less valid? I could still include stuff about running horses and dragon hill. In fact, isn't the Uffington horse said to be 'beaky'? Rhiannon had links with magic birds too. Perhaps the horse is a cross between a magic horse and a magic bird.

Hah I'm liking this, I think my theory's got legs. Just needs a bit of tidying up.

Evergreen Dazed Aug 18, 2017 12:45:39

Replying to Rhiannon

I did have a thought late last night that by 'behind' the horse, he meant to the left of its tail rather than how I took it to be (rising behind its back).

But even if he did mean that, it doesn't really demonstrate much in terms of meaning or intention does it?

And aye, i've never thought it's head resembled a horse! How could it?

The whole thing looks more like a map to me. But that could be wishful thinking.

Evergreen Dazed Aug 18, 2017 12:58:08

Replying to Rhiannon

I think i'm going to go up there on a sunny day near to the solstice, if we get such a thing. Take some photos. Anybody else fancy it? The more the merrier.
Biscuits mandatory.

tiompan Aug 18, 2017 13:25:17

Replying to Rhiannon

Rhiannon wrote:

I know we've probably argued this enough now, but I just want to say...

But when you look at his very own diagram and photo of this, the midwinter sun isn't rising behind the horse at all.

The real problems are the contortions attempting to make the reader believe the horse is oriented east to west .
I thought that the above comment was one of lesser errors .
It's not a sun roll i.e. the sun is not rolling up or down the contour the hill ,it is simply rising above a fairly level hill top .The reason that the sun appears low is not due to any particular rise in the topography it's because it's one of the characteristics of the midwinter sun , it simply doesn't get very high in midwinter , there is no "high rise in the immediate topography ".

tjj Aug 19, 2017 17:28:22

Replying to Rhiannon

I regret posting this link on the Home page - was expecting it to be mostly ignored as is usually the case. It it wasn't for the fact it has 46 comments under it I may well have deleted it.

Anyway, here it is as a forum topic with over 60 comments mostly by the same two people with just thesweetcheat bravely trying to offer an alternative view. Reading some of the posts, the word dogmatic comes to mind.
So I've written a few words to say what Uffington White Horse means to me - and oddly enough it has nothing to do with the sun and far more to do with the wind.
An ancient symbol carved just below the brow of Uffington Hill, quite close to the hill-fort, it is a place deeply embedded in my psyche, almost an extension of Avebury, linked to it by the Ridgeway. When seen from the London train, it tells me I am nearly home. In fact, optical illusion though it may be, it appears to be galloping in the same direction. But of course it is the speed of the train which causes this effect.
It’s a place I go whenever the opportunity arises to refresh and recharge. A place to take the heartaches of life and loss, leaving them there to be blown away on the wind. A place to see the red kite and kestrel hover below so you almost feel you are flying with them. A place of wild orchids and blue butterflies. A wonderful, enigmatic place of mystery and the elements.

Can I have it back now please.

nigelswift Aug 20, 2017 09:24:45

Replying to Rhiannon

IMO in comparison with the abusive and dishonest and disruptive stuff that has sometimes appeared on here, any disagreements, misjudgements and misunderstandings in this thread are nothing, certainly not worth more than momentary umbrage. So come on, like it or not we're bound together by a wish to talk about something almost no-one else wants to talk about! If you know a better hole go to it but if you don't, don't!