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Mick Harper
Site Admin
In: London
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| Looking at the distribution of stone circles it's clear that Bodmin Moor and its environs would have had to lay on extra assistance |
A stone circle is required each time a change of direction is required. The reason there are so many in Cornwall is that so many parts of it are cut off from direct-line-of-sight with Avebury because of the vicissitudes of the Cornish coastline.
However it may be that something like Bodmin Moor may require a stone circle-flagged detour in its own right.
| Every time the traveller reaches a stone circle he can stop to take his bearings |
No! that not will give him a bearing. It will merely show him where the next marker is. You have to do one other thing to get a bearing. What is it?
| So a ley line is an imaginary line drawn in your head to get from one stone circle to another |
It's an imaginary line drawn firmly on the landscape one would hope but yes that's the general picture. Not that anybody actually wants to get to a stone circle, they are a means to your actual end.
| which by dint of continuous use has become marked by the feet and hooves of centuries of travel |
Definitely not. A ley line is hardly ever walked. You use whatever is to hand (and that will vary depending whether you are droving, walking, riding, summer, winter etc etc) by way of local routes.
| from the west coast of Cornwall in order to reach Avebury? |
No, that's just one route among, for practical purposes, an infinite number. The St Michael Line is especially important because a) it is the longest east-west line and b) it connects the vital area of Cornwall with the rest of Britain, and possibly Europe. It may be thought of as a major trunk route in a trunk-and-branch system.
However, yes, Avebury is of vital importance. But leave that for a moment. The really vital factor is that sailors have no charts and without charts coastwise sailing is suicidal. You have to go out to sea, sail northwards or whatever and by dead reckoning make landfall.
Hence the Megalithic System is designed to cope with the central fact that sailors landing anywhere on the west coast (in Europe, not just Britain) do not know where they are. But the stone circles tell them a) where they are and b) where to go. By one simple observation and the knowledge of one simple fact.
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Mick Harper
Site Admin
In: London
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Looking at your cup-and-rings URL, Grant, this sprang out at me
| it is one of the few known to local inhabitants, and marks the site of many May day religious services." |
Ever wondered why Mayday is so important?
| and the knowledge of one simple fact. | |
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Grant
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| By one simple observation and the knowledge of one simple fact. |
You could determine N and S by measuring the shadow cast by the stones.
Then the stones could represent the entire European megalithic community. One stone would be marked (or even better, just be the largest) and that would represent "you are here."
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Mick Harper
Site Admin
In: London
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| You could determine N and S by measuring the shadow cast by the stones. |
You can do that anywhere just by looking at Polaris (actually Draconis...the Dragon! in Megalithic times). No need for someone to build a bunch of stones and have people go visit them. Or did you mean how far north and south you were on the European sea-board? That would certainly be worth knowing and there's a very much simpler way of doing that.
| Then the stones could represent the entire European megalithic community. One stone would be marked (or even better, just be the largest) and that would represent "you are here." |
OK...but how does that help man or beast. Here's a tip. Put yourself there. What do you know? What would you like to know. What would you like to acquire for the next bit of the journey? Stuff like that..
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Hatty
Site Admin
In: Berkshire
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| Grant wrote: | | Look at these pictures of cup and ring marks from North Yorkshire. Surely these must represent a map. |
Just what I was thinking! Calling these marks 'cup and ring' is a bit misleading. Going by the legends of witches and fairies and fertility rites associated with the stones, the marks were seen as symbolic rather than practical.
| Ever wondered why Mayday is so important? |
It marks the beginning of spring right across western Europe. Apart from midsummer and midwinter it's the only universally celebrated day. My dad used to say 1st March was the start of spring which may be correct according to the calendar but temperature-wise it's far out.
1st May is traditionally celebrated with bonfires which would be helpful to sailors and land travellers alike especially if the fires were lit on hillsides. Good way to get rid of winter debris. Maybe May Day was traditional path-clearing day, like an external spring-cleaning.
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Hatty
Site Admin
In: Berkshire
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| A stone circle is required each time a change of direction is required. |
That doesn't make sense if you're following a straight line. A stone circle may represent a crossroads, giving you a choice of routes.
| No! that not will give him a bearing. It will merely show him where the next marker is. You have to do one other thing to get a bearing. What is it? |
The only way to get a bearing is to use a map and a compass. You can't tell where you are by looking at a collection of stones unless you know where north and south lie and that's not easy in the middle of a drizzly misty moor. The stones themselves would have to be marked to show which direction to take since there's no guarantee that travellers would be equipped with maps.
| Hence the Megalithic System is designed to cope with the central fact that sailors landing anywhere on the west coast (in Europe, not just Britain) do not know where they are. But the stone circles tell them a) where they are and b) where to go. By one simple observation and the knowledge of one simple fact. |
The stone circles tell them it's safe to land, like a lighthouse does. The sailors wouldn't necessarily know where they were though unless they were following a latitude.
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Mick Harper
Site Admin
In: London
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You've told us that Mayday is important but you haven't told us why Mayday specifically is important. As you say, it's the only non-calendrically-dictated date of worldwide significance.
However since nobody would be able to work this out (and I certainly didn't) I shall tell you. If you stand anywhere on the St Michael Line and watch the sunrise on May 1st you will be looking straight down the line. This is why we can be reasonably sure that the Megalithic System is essentially British in origin, and it is also why we can be confident that the Megalithic System is of at least Europe-wide significance. May the First happens to be when the rising sun shines down the longest east west line in Britain. Both these facts are dictated by nature.
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Hatty
Site Admin
In: Berkshire
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| Mick Harper wrote: | | If you stand anywhere on the St Michael Line and watch the sunrise on May 1st you will be looking straight down the line. This is why we can be reasonably sure that the Megalithic System is essentially British in origin, and it is also why we can be confident that the Megalithic System is of at least Europe-wide significance. May the First happens to be when the rising sun shines down the longest east west line in Britain. Both these facts are dictated by nature. |
That is amazing! I'd like to see it for myself. Are there any other lines where this happens or is St Michael the only one? His feast day is the 29th, why isn't Michaelmas on 1st May?
| did you mean how far north and south you were on the European sea-board? That would certainly be worth knowing and there's a very much simpler way of doing that. |
If the stones were located on a particular latitude as universally shared as 1st May, then sighting them would give sailors their bearings without necessarily having to negotiate treacherous coastlines.
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Mick Harper
Site Admin
In: London
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| Are there any other lines where this happens or is St Michael the only one |
No, each line is unique to a particular day
| If the stones were located on a particular latitude as universally shared as 1st May, then sighting them would give sailors their bearings without necessarily having to negotiate treacherous coastlines. |
Well, this is a roundabout way of solving one of the problems I set you. The one thing every sailor knows is the date. You may not be able to navigate but anyone can count how many days you've been at sea. So as soon as you reach a stone circle you just sight the rising sun (actually any standard astronomical cycle will do) and the stone it rises behind will be unique to that date and that place. So you'll know that you are in Cornwall rather than South Wales or Brittany.
Actually it should be more accurate than that but the Megalithic System is designed for dummies as well as professional seafarers. So let us suppose it is Hatty, the Berkshire housewife, standing somewhere on the Cornish coast and viewing the morning sunrise. Behind you is a large stone pointing the way you need to go. How do make a compass out of this situation just in case you subsequently get lost? This time you won't even need to know the date.
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Ishmael
In: Toronto
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I just want to say.
This still takes my breath away.
Brilliant. Brilliant. Brlliant.
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Ishmael
In: Toronto
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| Grant wrote: | | Look at these pictures of cup and ring marks from North Yorkshire. Surely these must represent a map. |
Amazing.
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Mick Harper
Site Admin
In: London
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A stone circle is required each time a change of direction is required.
That doesn't make sense if you're following a straight line. A stone circle may represent a crossroads, giving you a choice of routes. |
Have another look at your original map of the Michael Line
Let's suppose you were lucky enough to land at St Michael's Mount and wanted to get somewhere east of Avebury. Then you will encounter a stone circle at St Michael's Mount and that will send you on your way to Avebury. You will not need another stone circle. However, as you see from the map, you will encounter another stone circle at The Hurlers. Why? It's not there for you, it's for all the people who happened to land in North Cornwall or South Cornwall wishing to go to the east of England and who were directed by their stone circles to this point. They will now need to be re-oriented towards Avebury.
You can if you wish take another sighting at The Hurlers In fact it is advised because there is no way you would necessarily know you were on the Michael Line, but anyway you will quickly find you are because your sighting will be unchanged.
| The only way to get a bearing is to use a map and a compass. You can't tell where you are by looking at a collection of stones unless you know where north and south lie and that's not easy in the middle of a drizzly misty moor. The stones themselves would have to be marked to show which direction to take since there's no guarantee that travellers would be equipped with maps. |
Don't take that tone with me just because you can't see the wood for the trees.
| The stone circles tell them it's safe to land, like a lighthouse does. The sailors wouldn't necessarily know where they were though unless they were following a latitude. |
You can't see a stone circle from out to sea. We shall be cracking that part of the enigma in a little while (research Carnac if you want to be ahead of the field aka Grant). Remember, if the theory is true all mysteries must be solved. That's how you know it was true all along. I trust everybody is sharing in this feeling by now.
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Has anyone got a map of the Michael Line which continues west and includes Skellig etc? (I've seen it done to the middle east taking in various ancient sites, but can't remember where.....)
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Mick Harper
Site Admin
In: London
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