January 26, 1905J 



NATURE 



297 



NOTES ON STONEHENGE. 

 I. — Conditions and Traditions. 



AFTER Mr. Penrose, by his admirable observations 

 in Greece, had shown that the orientation theory 

 accounted as satisfactorily for the directions in which 

 the chief temples in Greece had been built as 1 had 

 shown it did for those in Egypt, it seemed important 

 to apply the same methods of inquiry with all avail- 

 able accuracy to some example, at all events, of the 

 various stone circles in Britain which have so far 

 escaped destruction. Many attempts had been pre- 

 viously made to secure data, but the instruments and 

 methods employed did not seem to be sufficient. 



Much time has, indeed, been lost in the investi- 

 gation of a great many of these circles, for the 

 reason that in many cases the relations of the monu- 

 ments to the chief points of the horizon have not 

 been considered ; and when they were, the observ- 

 ations were made only with reference to the magnetic 

 north, which is different at different places, and 

 besides is always varying ; few indeed have tried to 

 get at the astronomical conditions of the problem. 



So far as I know, there has never been a complete 

 inquiry into the stone circles in Britain, but Mr. 

 Lewis, who has paid much attention to these matters, 

 has dealt in a general manner with them {Archaeo- 

 logical Journal, vol. xli.x. p. 136), and has further 

 described {Journal Anthropological Institute, n.s., iii., 

 1900) the observations made by him of stone circles 

 in various parts of Scotland. From an examination 

 of a large number he concludes that they may be 

 divided into different types, each of which has its 

 centre in a different locality. The types are (i) the 

 Western Scottish type, consisting of a rather irregular 

 single ring or sometimes of two concentric rings. (2) 

 The Inverness type, consisting of a more regular ring 

 of better-shaped stones, surrounding a tumulus with a 

 retaining wall, containing a built-up chamber and 

 passage leading to it, or a kist without a passage. 

 (3) The Aberdeen type, consisting of a similar ring 

 with the addition of a so-called " altar-stone " and 

 usually having traces of a tumulus and kist in the 

 middle. In addition to these three types of circles, 

 there are what Mr. Lewis calls sun and star circles, 

 with their alignments of stones, and apparently pro- 

 portioned measurements. 



It may be useful here to state, w-ith regard to mega- 

 lithic remains generally, that they may be divided as 

 follows : — 



(a) Circles. These may be single or double, and 

 either concentric or not. 



(6) Menhirs, or single stones, in some cases still 

 upright, but in many overthrown. 



(c) -Xlignments, i.e. lines of stones in single, double, 

 or in many parallel lines. If these alignments are 

 short they are termed avenues. 



(d) Cromlechs; this term generally means a collec- 

 tion of stones; the term is applied to irregular circles 

 in Brittany. It also applies to a single stone raised on 

 the summits of tvi'o or more pillar stones forming the 

 fnd and sides of an irregular vault generally open at 

 ime end (" Dolmens of Ireland," Borlase, p. 429). 



(c) Coves. .\ term applied by Dr. .Stukeley and 

 others to what they considered shrines formed by 

 three upright stones, thus leaving one side open. I 

 take them to be partially protected observing places. 

 There are well-marked examples at Avebury, Stanton 

 Drew, and Kit's Coity House. 



(/) Dolmens, from Dol Men, a table stone. These 

 consist of a flat stone resting on two or more upright 

 stones forming a more or less complete chamber, 

 which may or may not have been sepulchral. I note 

 the following subdivisions, " Dolmen a gal^rie " 



NO. 1839, VOL, 71] 



having an entrance way of sufficient height, and 

 " Galgal," similar but smaller. In the " Dolmen ^ 

 I'all^e couverte " there is a covered passage way to 

 the centre. It is a more elaborate cove. For the 

 relation between cromlechs and dolmens, see Borlase 

 {loc. cit. and p. 424 et seq.). 



With regard to dolmens, I give the following 

 quotation from Mr. Penrose (Nature, vol. Ixlv., 

 September 12, 1901) : — 



" Near Locmariaquer in the estuary named Rivifere 

 d'Auray, there is an island named Gavr' Inis, or Goat 

 Island, which contains a good specimen of the kind of 

 dolmen which has been named ' Galgal.' 



" At the entrance our attention is at once arrested by 

 the profusion of tracery which covers the walls. From 

 the entrance to the wall facing us the distance is 

 between 50 and 60 feet. The square chamber to which 

 the gallery leads is composed of two huge slabs, the 

 sides of the room and gallery being composed of up- 

 right stones, about a dozen on each side. The mystic 

 lines and hieroglyphics similar to those above 

 mentioned appear to have a decorative character. 



" An interesting feature of Gavr' Inis is its remark- 

 able resemblance to the New Grange tumulus at 

 Meath. In construction there is again a strong re- 

 semblance to Maes-Howe, in the island of Orkney. 

 There is also some resemblance in smaller details." 



While we generally have circles in Britain without, 

 or with small, alignments, in Brittany we have align- 

 ments without circles, some of them being on an 

 enormous scale ' ; thiis at Menec (the place of stones) 

 we have eleven lines of menhirs, terminating towards 

 the west in a cromlech, and notwithstanding that great 

 numbers have been converted to other uses, 1169 

 menhirs still remain, some reaching as much as 18 

 feet in height. 



The alignments of Kermario (the place of the dead) 

 contain 989 menhirs in ten lines. That of Kerlescant 

 (the place of burning), which beginning with eleven 

 rows is afterwards increased to thirteen, contains 

 altogether 579 stones and thirty-nine in its cromlech, 

 with some additional stones. 



Both circles and alignments are associated with 

 holidays and the lighting of fires on certain days of 

 the year. This custom has remained more general 

 in Brittany than in Britain. 



.At Mount St. Michael, near Carnac, the custom 

 still prevails of lighting a large bonfire on its summit 

 at the time of the summer solstice ; others kindled on 

 prominent eminences for a distance of twenty or 

 thirty miles round reply to it. These fires are locally 

 called "Tan Heol," and also by a later use. Tan St. 

 Jean. 



In Scotland there was a similar custom in the first 

 week in May under the name of Bel Tan, or Baal's 

 Fire ; the synonym for summer used by Sir Walter 

 Scott in the " Lady of the Lake " : — 



Ours is no sapling chance-sown by the fountain 

 Blooming at Beltane in winter to fade. 



At Kerlescant the winter solstice is celebrated by 

 a holiday, whilst Menec greets the summer solstice, 

 and Kermario the equinoxes, with festivals. The 

 adoration paid these stones yielded very slowly to 

 Christianity. In the church history of Brittany the 

 Cultus Lapidnm was denounced in 658 a.d. 



Many of the fallen menhirs in these alignments have 

 been restored to their upright position by the French 

 Government. Some of them may have been over- 

 turned in compliance with the decree of 658 a.d. above 

 referred to. Several of the loftier menhirs are sur- 

 mounted by crosses of stone or iron. 



1 "Ihe French Stonehenge : an Account of the Principal Megalithic 

 Remains in the Morbihan Archipelago." By T. Cato Worsfold, F.R.Hist.S. 

 F.R.S.L. (London: Beinrose and Sons, Ltd.) 



