Stone circle
A stone circle is a ring of
Stone circles are usually grouped in terms of the shape and size of the stones, the span of their radius, and their population within the local area. Although many theories have been advanced to explain their use, usually related to providing a setting for ceremony or ritual, no consensus exists among archaeologists regarding their intended function. Their construction often involved considerable communal effort, including specialist tasks such as planning, quarrying, transportation, laying the foundation trenches, and final construction.[1]
Dates and archaeology
Growing evidence suggests that megalithic constructions began as early as 5000 BC in northwestern France
The earliest stone circles in Britain were erected 3000–2500 BC,
Most sites do not contain evidence of human dwelling, suggesting that stone circles were constructed for ceremonies. Sometimes, a stone circle is found in association with a burial pit or burial chamber, but most of these monuments have no such known association because of a lack of archaeological investigation.
Variants
Recumbent and axial stone circle
Recumbent stone circles are a variation containing a single large stone placed on its side. The stones are often ordered by height, with the tallest being the portals, with gradually reducing heights around each side of the circle, down to the recumbent stone, which is the lowest.[7] This type is found throughout the British Isles and Brittany, with 71 examples in Scotland[8] and at least 20 in south-west Ireland. In the latter nation they are generally called axial stone circles, including Drombeg stone circle near Rosscarbery, County Cork.
Scottish recumbent circles are usually flanked by the two largest of the standing stones immediately on either side. These are known as 'flankers'. The stones are commonly graded in height with the lowest stones being diametrically opposite to the tall flankers. The circle commonly contains a ring cairn and cremation remains.
Irish axial stone circles are found in Cork and Kerry counties. These do not have tall flanking stones on either side of the recumbent stone. Instead, there are two tall stones at the side of the circle opposite the recumbent stone. These are known as 'portals', as they form an entrance into the circle. Often the portals are turned so that their flat sides face each other, rather than facing the centre of the circle.
Concentric stone circle
A concentric stone circle is a type of prehistoric monument consisting of a circular or oval arrangement of two or more stone circles set within one another. They were in use from the late Neolithic to the end of the early Bronze Age and are found in England and Scotland.
Cobble pavements have been found in the centre of many examples. Connected features at some sites include central mounds, outlying standing stones, and avenues or circular banks on which the stones are set. Alternatively, they may be replicas of earlier timber circles rebuilt in stone, especially the examples in Wessex.
A funerary purpose is thought to be likely, especially by Aubrey Burl. He thought that such sites in Cumbria are analogous to the kerbs that surround some chamber tombs. Burials have been found at all excavated concentric stone circles: both inhumations and cremations. The burnt remains have been found either within an urn or placed directly in the earth.
Distribution
Megalithic monuments are found in especially great number on the European Atlantic fringe and in the British Isles.[9]
Britain and Ireland
There are approximately 1300 stone circles in Britain and Ireland.[10] Experts disagree on whether the construction of megaliths in Britain developed independently or was imported from mainland Europe.
A 2019 comprehensive radiocarbon dating study of megalithic structures across Europe and the British Isles concluded that construction techniques were spread to other communities via sea routes, starting from north-western France.[3][2] In contrast, the French archaeologist Jean-Pierre Mohen in his book Le Monde des Megalithes wrote that the British Isles are
"outstanding in the abundance of standing stones, and the variety of circular architectural complexes of which they formed a part ... strikingly original, they have no equivalent elsewhere in Europe – strongly supporting the argument that the builders were independent."
Some theories suggest that invaders from Brittany may have been responsible for constructing Stonehenge.[11]
Although stone circles are widely distributed across the island, Ireland has two main concentrations: in the
Continental Europe
Examples can be found throughout Continental Europe, from the
There are several examples in the Alentejo region of Portugal, the oldest and most complete being the Almendres Cromlech near the regional capital of Évora and within its municipality. Remains of many others consist only of the central anta (as they are known in the Alentejo). This sometimes appears to have been used as an altar but more often as a central burial structure, originally surrounded by megaliths that show only sparsely survived erosion and human activities.[18]
These circles are also known as
Africa
Ancient stone circles are found throughout the Horn of Africa. Booco in northeastern Somalia contains a number of such old structures. Small stone circles here surround two enclosed platform monuments, which are set together. The circles of stone are believed to mark associated graves.[19]
At
On the western side of the continent, the Senegambian stone circles can be found. The individual groups are dated from 700 A.D. to 1350 A.D.
Asia
In the Near East, possibly the oldest stone circles in the world were found at Atlit Yam (about 8000 BC). The locality is now submerged near the Levantine Mediterranean coast.
Other locations include India or Japan. See more in the relevant Wikipedia category
References
Footnotes
- ^ Richards, Colin. Building the Great Stone Circles of the North. Windgather Press, 2013. pp. 3-4
- ^ PMID 30808740.
- ^ a b Grossman, David (February 12, 2019). "Stonehenge Might Have Its Roots with Ancient Sailors from France". Popular Mechanics.
- ^ Annick Jacq. "Carnac". Bretagne-celtic.com. Archived from the original on 2012-02-04. Retrieved 2009-05-05.
- ^ a b "New research reveals the 'spectacular' secrets of Britain's earliest stone circles". The Independent. August 20, 2016. Archived from the original on 2022-05-25.
- ^ "The Strange Origin of Scotland's Stone Circles". BBC. 12 October 2012.
- ^ Burl, Aubrey (1995). A Guide to the Stone Circles of Britain, Ireland and Brittany. Yale University Press.
- ^ Welfare, Adam (2011). Great Crowns of Stone: The Recumbent Stone Circles of Scotland (PDF). Edinburgh: Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland. p. 271.
- ^ Aubrey Burl. "The Megalith Map". Archived from the original on 2006-09-28. Retrieved 2006-09-22.
- ISBN 9780300083477.
The Stone Circles of Britain, Ireland and Brittany.
- ^ "France's new Stonehenge: Secrets of a neolithic time machine". The Independent. July 31, 2006. Archived from the original on 2022-05-25.
- ^ Murphy (1997), p.27
- ^ "Le circuit des Mégalithes".
- ^ "Lacam de Peyrarines". The Megalithic Portal.
- ^ "Senescau Cromlech". The Megalithic Portal.
- ^ "Cromlech - Regione Autonoma Valle d'Aosta". www.regione.vda.it.
- ISBN 978-90-8890-034-1.
- ^ "Thracian Cromlech (Stone Circle) - Staro Zhelezare, Bulgaria".
- ISBN 0891306587. Retrieved 9 November 2014.
- ^ Institut für Afrikanistik und Aẗhiopistik – Universität Hamburg (2004). Aethiopica: International Journal of Ethiopian Studies. Vol. 7–8. Harrassowitz Verlag. p. 27. Retrieved 1 January 2015.
Sources
- ISBN 978-0-300-08347-7.
- ISBN 978-0-415-15204-4.
- Childe, V. Gordon (1947). Prehistoric Communities of the British Isles (second edition). Glasgow and London: Gilmour & Dean Ltd.
- Murphy, Cornelius (1997). The Prehistoric Archaeology of the Beara Peninsula, Co. Cork. University College Cork.
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ignored (help) - ISBN 978-0-415-20767-6.
Further reading
- Joanne Parker, ed. (2009). Written On Stone: The Cultural Reception of British Prehistoric Monuments. Cambridge Scholars. ISBN 978-1-4438-1338-9.
- Ronald E. Hicks (1981). "Henges and stone circles, ritual and archaeoastronomy: archaeological research in Ireland and Great Britain".
External links
- Interactive map of megalithic monuments in Europe.