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tiompan wrote:
Hello Moss , neither ,grid ref =SU 13729 67419 2km e.se of the Sanctuary it's about 180 m OD and all the sites may be intervisible . I have no idea of date/type etc . And it's all predicated on Silababy being man made, the grid ref for Silababy ibeing accurate and was it intentional .
Miles out was'nt I.... so coming nearer home and a sightline from Silbury/Silbaby/Sanctuary/Bitham barrow, and if you look at the map, Lockeridge Dene (which has a stream of natural sarsen stones coming down from Fyfield Down) is also near the Bitham barrow, there's another tumulus mentioned there as well by the way, you may have a significant feature in the landscape being highlighted....
I looked at Devereux's sightlining from Silbury Hill to the surrounding landscape - not sure I was convinced....

Still there seems to be a public footpath from West Overton past the barrow it would be interesting looking back and taking photos.

http://www.themodernantiquarian.com/post/23728/images/lockeridge_dene.html

Don't get lost on the idea of split degree alignments. Perhaps what was happening is that sun/moon/planet rises and sets were being witnessed. Some kind of sympathetic magic rite. Bringing the celestial power down to earth. Perhaps.

In an earlier discussion about Silbaby and Silbury and me exhorting persons to photograph the extreme event of the lunar maximum (now passed) I recall Pete pointing out that there was some prehistoric enclosure along the Sil1 Sil2 axis. I suggested it was for the hoi-polloi with the priestly ones in the best seats. Although many alignments are computed to sun moon positions there must have been observation and recording of Mercury, Venus and Mars, at least, and perhaps Jupiter and Saturn too. These might help explain the undeciphered alignments.

And then there's the shadows ...

(which are particularly long at the moment).