Woke up to a beautiful morning, the natural world does not care about our woes. Interesting email from a friend sent my mind racing. Recently an archaeologist called Gaffney had made the declaration that he had found shafts, whether Neolithic or later remains to be seen, around the settlement of Durrington Walls, which should be linked into the greater landscape of Stonehenge. Now he has not dug these shafts so in all truth he is speculating. All he has to prove in my mind is the geological nature of the site, to show evidence that if not deliberate digging of shafts they are in fact sinkholes or swallets.
This is where I must state my love affair with words, I fell in love with the idea of swallets and streams, the water being swallowed by the earth and then the rituals of prehistory became engulfed in 'beings/gods' that inhabited the nether part of the world.
But my friend had sent a link to Brian Johns blog, a controversial figure in that he has argued for the past few years, that the central bluestones of Stonehenge were carried from their home on the Preseli hills by glacial movement and not transported overland or by boat. It is difficult to imagine these stones being moved by human endeavour, but the argument against Johns is that there is no evidence for any other bluestones on Salisbury Plain and that these stones were moved via roll log walking, rivers and the sea.
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| The Mendips is a special part of England for it has caves and gorges hewn out of the rock. |
I have never heard of 'swallets' before. Is that where 'swallow' comes from? I love the Mendips. I think that is where our Bath water comes from, or so I am told. Nobody really knows and long may it stay that way. We need a bit of mystery.
ReplyDeleteYes the hot waters in Bath - Aqua Sulis, seem to come from the Mendips Tom. The gorges and caves are beautiful round the Mendips, mostly visited though with children is Wookey Hole and Gough Cave.
DeleteYes, I have been there many times.
DeleteTwo new words for me: "swallets" and then following your link I find "chthonic".
ReplyDeleteThe 'underworld' chthonic is a good Greek word, but you would have to immerse yourself in Celtic reading to understand the various worlds of the Celts. Swallow is a good word as well, I think it comes from old English/Saxon.
ReplyDeleteVery interesting. So many mysteries in the prehistoric world.
ReplyDeleteA fertile book to raid and make up stories Rain.
ReplyDeleteHow Stonehenge's blue stones arrived there remains as mysterious as how the moai of Easter Island were moved from their quarry to their locations all around the island.
ReplyDeletebut it is good to speculate. Stone rolling on wood logs is an accepted measure, a team of men pulling the stone over the round logs, the wheel yet to appear.
ReplyDeleteSuch amazing finds and beautiful scenery.
ReplyDeleteSomerset is beautiful in parts, the Mendips especially so.
ReplyDelete