Stonehenge 181
Image by Howburn Digger
Stonehenge

Stone shifting 5

Quote, Julian Richards & Mark Whitby.

"The constraints of experimentation within a filming schedule inevitably meant that many avenues of research were identified but not followed. Alternative vehicles and tracks for stone transport may be suggusted and studies of lubricants should examine the properties of a wide range of substances available in prehistory. Experiments in rope making should continue and should involve the use of other types of fibre. Other methods of raising the uprights may be suggested, while those approriate for raising the lintel continue to to provoke debate amongst the authors. While one (Richards) still favours the crib method, the other feels that a variation of the method described by Hogg (1981) may be quicker and more efficient. Hogg suggests rocking stones about a central pivot placed between the paired uprights, a method which in priciple is described as being used in the construction of pyramids (Fitchen 1986).
The methods of construction employed at Stonehenge will no doubt continue to exercise the imagination of both archaeologists and engineers. It would be preferable if their practical skills could also be exercised. After the completion of the experiment the trilithon was dismantled (by crane) and its components were donated to English Heritage. They are currently (1996) in store on the Salisbury Plain Trianing Area. Their fate is undecided but it has been assumed that they will eventually be re-erected at an appropriate venue. Far from being a static monument to a single experiment, the authors would prefer to see the replica stones used i9n a dynamic way, available for further experimentation to anyone with an idea to test and the resources to carry it through in safety. The stones are unlikely to be replicated again in a manner suitable for robust use and once permanently raised both they and the ideas that they generated will end up set in concrete. An annual Stonehenge trilithon raising (preferably timed for completion on 21st June) could also be a considerable visitor attraction."

Julian Richard's email address is:

[email protected]

I think we probably need to discuss an appropriate presentation and we should probably wait until our web site is up and running properly, but it sounds like he might at least give us a hearing.

I'm still subbornly working on the tower and levers method.

This is the latest version, launch the stone off the tower, say from an height of 14ft. The stone is now in the hole resting against the slope at say 70 degrees. Don't build the tower any higher, lever against the diagonal strutts, these will now be designed to work like an hydraulic ram.

I'll explain, imagine a double extending ladder angled at 45 degrees running through the tower. As the stone is levered up the ladder is extended to follow the stone maintaining the same angle, therefore we will always be levering at 90 degrees to the strutts. We will need more manpower as the stone will feel heavier from lower down but it still won't need many men.

Advantages, no need to build the tower up to the height of the stone, less distance to travel before the stone is upright. Great savings in time on the day. inherently safe and subject to Steves approval foolproof.