12th September 2025

 A new book arrived yesterday, one written by an archaeologist, Mark Edmonds. It has the alluring title Orcadia - Land, Sea and Stone in Neolithic Orkney.  I say alluring deliberately because anything with the Scottish Islands mentioned will drag you in.  The simple crofters life appeals to a few, not to me.  The beauty of the islands speaks of solitude, sea and land but the weather drags itself with an unexpected freedom across the islands, wind and rain having a fine old time.  

I have read the first 50 pages, it is a soft lyrical style of writing rather like the author that the book is dedicated to which is Richard Bradley whose two books sit on my shelves.

1) An Archaeology of Natural Places, 2) The Significance of Monuments.  Both books explore archaeology in the new wave of interpreting the monuments. 

 

Callanish stones - By Tom Richardson, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia

Bradley extends his scope to Scandinavian archaeology.   It seems to me that the popular version of Stonehenge and its funeral aspect, (there are many barrows round Stonehenge) will be superseded by the much more interesting Northern islands in Scotland for their prehistoric history.  A Roman writer, Diodorus Siculus mentions the 'great spherical temple' which is thought to be Callanish on the Island of Lewis.  Callanish definitely rivals Stonehenge in its stones, it is said to have an unique alignment to the sun and moon, as of course most stone monuments have.   Technology clutters our lives sadly and we cannot go outside and focus on the movement of the stars as once the Neolithic people did.

To ordinary news.  We are getting rain and I would think there is a sigh of relief from the Yorkshire Water company as some reservoirs are down to 30%.  Of course rain has brought thunderstorms and lightening and affected the trains.  My daughter did not come home till late last night the lightening had taken out the signalling and she went to a restaurant to eat.  Every day this week there has been some sort of delay on the train.  Privatisation is a complete waste of time, the profits go elsewhere!