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Stone shifting 4

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Here's my idea for the basis of a Megalithic Project home page, to start a discussion.

(Does anyone want to do a similar thing for a proposed submission to film/TV companies on "Stonehengineers - Moving the Megaliths"?


The Megalith Project aims to investigate the means by which Neolithic communities transported and erected large stones to produce megalithic monuments. The group comprises archaeologists and antiquarians based mainly in Britain, and the focus is therefore mainly upon the many British monuments, and with an eventual emphasis on Stonehenge.

Our focus is upon practical experimentation using full-sized stones and primitive technology in order to gain insight into the engineering and human difficulties encountered by the ancient peoples, and the solutions that may have occurred to them. The project has been inspired by a new and apparently highly efficient means of stone moving that has been proposed. < Link to pages about Gordon, contrasting efficiency of all previous solutions with his>.
In essence, our working hypothesis is that since this method appears to be vastly more efficient than all previous assumptions, it is not unreasonable to consider that it may have been recognized and used. Such a concept, which would imply many monuments could have been constructed by quite small teams, has wide-ranging implications for much currently accepted archaeological thought and is therefore worthy of rigorous practical testing.

The project is intended to be in the form of a series of experiments using the newly proposed method, which has been termed “stone rowing”. < Link to engineering-type explanation and diagrams> Several highly encouraging demonstrations have already been carried out by it’s originator, Gordon Pipes < link to more Gordon stuff >

The intended sequence of tests, with approximate dates, is listed below. Links to photographs and reports will be added shortly after each test.

Hi Nigel

This is a bit frustrating - I'd really like to get involved with this bit as it's (allegedly) my area of expertise - I'm a text editor and (non-techie!) web developer by trade.

Unfortunately, the timing's bad as I'm really busy with childcare etc this weekend than I'm away until Friday with no web access, then I have intensive childcare next weekend too!

I've only got 2 mins now!!!

Any chance of holding this sort of stuff 'til I'm available again - around 22-23 Sept?

If not, no probs - I'm not saying I can work miracles or even do things that nobody else here can do, but I was picked for my job because I'm good at it!

In the meantime, I hate to say it, but your draft is WAY too text heavy, esp for a homepage.

The homepage should really just say in a few VERY short paras (preferably less than 5 lines each) the real BASICS of the project, it's aims, a VERY quick description of the technique and maybe when we plan to do it. Really simple bare-bones stuff on the homepage.

(SHIT I want to show you – but I've no time!)

Then usually you'd have a menu to take people to a page for each subject where you can get more detailed…but still not too intense – give an email address so people who want REALLY techy stuff go straight to the 'brains'.

Keep bearing in mind we're all mad obsessives here from one point of view or another,but the project might even interest relatively sane people too!!!

I don't know who is doing the actual webpages but I'm sure just about anyone who volunteers will be able to set up separate pages for the different elements you're covering & link the pages – it's pretty easy.

Bloody hell, wish I could help more NOW!

Gonna have to go – I'll try to check in later!

love

Moth

I'm giving the project some thought over the weekend. got the tiffs/letterhead, ta!

excited ? an understatement!!