Abstract:Non-invasive survey in the Stonehenge ‘Triangle’, Amesbury, Wiltshire, has highlighted a number of features that have a significant bearing on the interpretation of the site. Geophysical anomalies may signal the position of buried stones adding to the possibility of former stone arrangements, while laser scanning has provided detail on the manner in which the stones have been dressed; some subsequently carved with axe and dagger symbols. The probability that a lintelled bluestone trilithon formed an entrance i… Show more
“…Several authorities have suggested that the sarsens were sourced from the area of Stonehenge or somewhere closely adjacent (see below). Darvill et al (2012, 1029) have recently suggested that some stone was probably present on site at the outset; notably the massive cone-shaped Heelstone as it has been considered to have been extremely difficult to move (Johnson 2008, 121), an observation supported by measurements taken from the laser scan data which demonstrates that it is the heaviest stone on site (Abbott & Anderson Whymark 2012; Field et al forthcoming).…”
Section: Periglacial Geography and Holocene Land Surfacementioning
confidence: 99%
“…the land in the angle of the A303 and A344 roads limited by the north–south Larkhill by-way in the west) and, in particular, to introduce the use of ground penetrating radar (GPR; Linford et al 2012). Additionally, both the ground surface and stones themselves were recorded by laser scanning and in the latter case this was supplemented by photogrammetric recording of the upper surfaces of the lintels and freestanding uprights; the stones were thus recorded in unprecedented detail (<0.5 mm resolution) and will be considered separately in part 2 of this report (Field et al forthcoming). Fig.…”
Integrated non-invasive survey in the Stonehenge ‘triangle’, Amesbury, Wiltshire, has highlighted a number of features that have a significant bearing on the interpretation of the site. Among them are periglacial and natural topographical structures, including a chalk mound that may have influenced site development. Some geophysical anomalies are similar to the post-holes in the car park of known Mesolithic date, while others beneath the barrows to the west may point to activity contemporary with Stonehenge itself. Evidence that the ‘North Barrow’ may be earlier in the accepted sequence is presented and the difference between the eastern and western parts of the enclosure ditch highlighted, while new data relating to the Y and Z Holes and to the presence of internal banks that mirror their respective circuits is also outlined.
“…Several authorities have suggested that the sarsens were sourced from the area of Stonehenge or somewhere closely adjacent (see below). Darvill et al (2012, 1029) have recently suggested that some stone was probably present on site at the outset; notably the massive cone-shaped Heelstone as it has been considered to have been extremely difficult to move (Johnson 2008, 121), an observation supported by measurements taken from the laser scan data which demonstrates that it is the heaviest stone on site (Abbott & Anderson Whymark 2012; Field et al forthcoming).…”
Section: Periglacial Geography and Holocene Land Surfacementioning
confidence: 99%
“…the land in the angle of the A303 and A344 roads limited by the north–south Larkhill by-way in the west) and, in particular, to introduce the use of ground penetrating radar (GPR; Linford et al 2012). Additionally, both the ground surface and stones themselves were recorded by laser scanning and in the latter case this was supplemented by photogrammetric recording of the upper surfaces of the lintels and freestanding uprights; the stones were thus recorded in unprecedented detail (<0.5 mm resolution) and will be considered separately in part 2 of this report (Field et al forthcoming). Fig.…”
Integrated non-invasive survey in the Stonehenge ‘triangle’, Amesbury, Wiltshire, has highlighted a number of features that have a significant bearing on the interpretation of the site. Among them are periglacial and natural topographical structures, including a chalk mound that may have influenced site development. Some geophysical anomalies are similar to the post-holes in the car park of known Mesolithic date, while others beneath the barrows to the west may point to activity contemporary with Stonehenge itself. Evidence that the ‘North Barrow’ may be earlier in the accepted sequence is presented and the difference between the eastern and western parts of the enclosure ditch highlighted, while new data relating to the Y and Z Holes and to the presence of internal banks that mirror their respective circuits is also outlined.
“…1). Moreover, constructional features relating to the method for fitting the stones together, as revealed by field examination and photogrammetric survey, provide evidence of an intention to form a compete circuit (Field et al 2015: 135). As such, it must be concluded that the missing sarsen uprights and lintels were robbed in antiquity.…”
Section: Building Time Into the Fabric Of Stonehengementioning
Scholars have long seen in the monumental composition of Stonehenge evidence for prehistoric time-reckoning—a Neolithic calendar. Exactly how such a calendar functioned, however, remains unclear. Recent advances in understanding the phasing of Stonehenge highlight the unity of the sarsen settings. Here, the author argues that the numerology of these sarsen elements materialises a perpetual calendar based on a tropical solar year of 365.25 days. The indigenous development of such a calendar in north-western Europe is possible, but an Eastern Mediterranean origin is also considered. The adoption of a solar calendar was associated with the spread of solar cosmologies during the third millennium BC and was used to regularise festivals and ceremonies.
“…The surviving stones of the bluestone oval at the centre of Stonehenge are considerably longer than this, averaging 2.2 m. The stones of the bluestone circle however are somewhat shorteraveraging 1.4 m with less complete examples, which could conceivably have functioned as lintels. Field et al 2015 note that four bluestones (67, 69, 70, and 72) bear scars from the removal of tenons, while stones 150 and 36 are lintels re-used as uprights.…”
Section: Bob Davis Et Al Rti Investigation Of Engraved Chalk Plaquesmentioning
Newly discovered and previously documented Late Neolithic chalk plaques from the Stonehenge locality have been subjected to new, non-invasive techniques which allow access to previously unseen elements of archaeological evidence. The application of these methods – involving Reflectance Transformation Imaging (RTI) and Polynomial Texture Mapping (PTM) – has revealed detail of the surface preparation and allowed methods and sequence of the compositions to be unpicked, clarifying their complexities. The results reveal a range of approaches to the compositions, some of which demonstrate planning, order, and intention while others include less systematic, rapidly executed sketches. Investigations of lines and surfaces have been made, supplemented by preliminary studies of replicated test pieces, to examine potential implements used in their creation and remark on plaque biographies and surface attrition following manufacture. Furthermore, detail revealed by RTI provides indications of the orientations in which some of the plaques should be viewed and – in one instance – suggests a ‘reflected’ element that may not be entirely abstract. Results from improved radiocarbon determinations place the plaques in the early part of the 3rd millennium bc which, together with identification of individual motifs, allows the plaques and the designs to be reconsidered within the corpus of Neolithic art in the British Isles.
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