Stonehenge 181
Image by Howburn Digger
Stonehenge

Stone shifting 5

Let me get this straight, are you suggesting we build a 14ft tower to get the stone to 70 degrees and then abandon it in favour of an 100ft pole?

As I understand it Gordon, the pole would work for a very shallow angled stone so only a small stone-tipping tower, if any, would be needed

Almost. Though we are discussing this in several independent threads and I have already suggested that a 40 foot pole might suffice.

My problem with the tower is that it's an ideal structure for raising a stone vertically, but not for handling large side loads and it's very difficult to make it strong enough. If anything breaks under the strain, then 6 people could come crashing down from 24 feet. I don't think that any engineer could convince the Health and Safety Executive that it was not a risk.

During the levering-up of the stone people are on independent towers, some 20 feet away from the main tower. If this main tower is only 14 feet high and it falls over they are far enough away to be safe.

Similarly, people working a rope-based system are on the ground. If the rope breaks and the stone falls there is nobody in its path. The only risk is whiplash from the rope.