Fancy Making The Tool Used To Make Megalithic Stone Circles!
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Use the sun, a few bits of wood and some string – you could create something amazing!
Did you know that virtually all megalithic structures (like stone circles, henges and long barrows) found through the UK and northern France use the same standard measurement?
And that this measurement is found to be virtually identical across thousands of miles in 100′s of different locations – so how did they do it?
Well, there has been a lot of research into how and why these structures were built – and it all seems to come back to the heavens. We assume that these are all astrologically motivated structures – to watch solstices and such – but now it seems that they were all built using these observations in the first place!
What Is This Tool?
Well, it is called the Megalithic Yard (MY), and is a measurement tool that helps people to build great structures that can channel the light of the Sun, Moon or Venus onto specific places at specific times of the year.
Rather than just make loads of copies of the original 1 and send it miles in each direction, the ancient builders found a way to create this tool wherever you were – and it would always be the same size and show the maker the direction to face their structure.
It was rather like a set of instructions for megalithic builders across the north-west of Europe which people took with them and passed on by word of mouth – well, they had invented these great structures, but hadn’t got around to a written language!
According to several books and notes on the Internet, this measurement is also still to be found today – as the MY is linked to the modern ‘mile’ by use of the ‘old-fashioned’ measurements of ‘rods’ or ‘poles’ – and those of us that have allotments will know all about ‘rods’!
And, using the MY for weight and mass also creates some well known measurements – like the imperial pound and the imperial pint!
How To Make It:
Before you get started – this process does take a while to set up and then at least one whole clear night to complete – and does involve a bit of maths!
But, what great fun it is to sit out under the night sky in summer and take yourself back to a time when people really needed to work this out! You are sharing your experience with some of the greatest builders of our history.
I mean, their structures are still standing today – and mystifying scientists! These people were dragging massive stones across counties – and sometimes countries – to build their structures.
And as you know they are all built in open areas to make full use of the night sky – so you need to find a largish open space with a clear view of the horizon.
Then, you need to gather together the following equipment and a torch (and hopefully some friends, and you are ready to go:
- 2 thick poles about 6ft long each
- 1 shorter pole of around 10 inches with 5 equal notches
- 1 long washing line cord (around 40 ft)
- 1 shorter string (around 5ft)
- 1 small symmetrical weight with a hole in the centre
- 1 sharp blade
It would certainly be wise to print off the full instructions as there are a lot of numbers involved in setting up the poles and counting time – but the general pattern of events involves calculating a megalithic degree (of a circle) and then setting up a start and a finish post on the arc of your circle.
You will then need to count the time it takes a bright star to move from one pole to the other pole by using a pendulum. The pendulum needs to swing back and forth 366 times between the star passing the first pole and then passing the second pole. Luckily there are plenty of bright stars in the night sky to give you a few attempts to get it right!
And hopefully, plenty of tasty food and drink to keep you going until you do!
If you want to read more about megalithic builders and their astronomical beliefs and actions, then take a look at the book ‘Uriels Machine’ by Christopher Knight and Robert Lomas. It certainly made me think differently about our Stone Age culture – and maybe you will look at them in a different light too!
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