History of paganism in Caledonia : with an examination into the influence of Asiatic philosophy, and the gradual development of Christianity in Pictavia. / By Thomas A. Wise.

  • Wise, T. (Thomas), 1801-1889.
Date:
1884
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: History of paganism in Caledonia : with an examination into the influence of Asiatic philosophy, and the gradual development of Christianity in Pictavia. / By Thomas A. Wise. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by Royal College of Physicians, London. The original may be consulted at Royal College of Physicians, London.

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    forced them to yield up their religion along with their liberties, had been compelled to evacuate the island, that the people, once more free to resume their venerated religious rites, and full of zeal for the faith of their fathers, would appear to have set about the erection of this monument, which is quite as remarkable for the mechanical resource it displays as for its stupendous magnitude. Stonehenge consists(l) of a number of rows of stones in circular or oval arrangement. The outer circle is formed of 60 stones tapering slightly towards the top, 18 to 20 feet in height above ground, 3I feet apart, and with 30 imposts secured by mortices and tenons, the part embedded in the ground being undressed, but that above being worked with much care. Inside this, and at a distance of 80 feet from it, is another circle, with a circumference of over 300 feet, composed of 40 smaller stones without imposts. These taper slightly, and are in general about half the height, breadth, and thickness of those of the outer circle. Within the second circle are five trilithons, arranged in a horse-shoe form, each consisting of two upright stones, with a third placed horizontally across their top. They increase in height from east to west. The uprights are grooved along their sides, the inner faces directed towards the altar being more smoothly finished than the outer. Within these trilithons, and sheltered' by them, and encircling the oblong flat stone called the altar, are a number of boulders about 3 feet high, arranged in an oval form. Near the upper extremity of this the altar lies flat on the ground. It measures 16 feet in length, 4 feet in breadth, and 26 inches in thickness; and appears to have been placed across the oval near the western bend. By one standing at the middle of the eastern border, and looking to the east, the ellipse is seen to lie nearly due east and west; but if allowance be made for the variation of the compass, the longer axis departs considerably from an easterly direction; and this seems to prove that this line was directed towards the stone {Fig. 35— c and Fig. 36— rising of the sun at the summer solstice {Fig. 36—b).{2) The other two {Fig. 35—e e), one in the N. and the other in the E., may indicate the rising and setting sun at the winter solstice, the great conventions being regulated by the primary divisions of the ecliptic into solstices and equinoxes. The flat stone (a) is the outer altar stone where the pilgrim presented himself for admission to the temple, and tendered his offerings to the presiding priests. The mounds were probably the judgment seats. Some of the largest of the stones are very heavy, and must weigh from 30 to 40 tons, most of them taken from boulders (grey withers), found in large numbers in the neighbourhood, although several of them have been brought from considerable distances: some, Dr. Buckland supposed, all the way from Wales. Sir R. C. Hoare (1) We speak of it here as it was originally finished, or in design. It is now, as is well known, a ruin. (2) Dr. Smith believed that the sun, at the summer solstice, rose over the summit of the Friar's Heel ;and Dr. Thurman confirmed this belief by a visit to Stonehenge on the 25th June, and as the long-looked for moment arrived—one friend being stationed at the outer circle and another on the altar stone—the sun gradually rose, a globe of fire, immediately behind the Friar's Heel. Long's Stonehenge, p. 57. Fig. 36. and indicated the point where the sun rose on the auspicious morning of the summer solstice. About 100 feet from the outer circle is a fosse or ditch 30 feet broad, with a vallum a few feet in height on the outside, and with a slight elevation on the inner margin sloping towards the interior, and forming a large circular terrace. This is defective in the S.E. direction, where was the entrance leading to the avenue, which can still be traced by banks of earth visible on each side. On this terrace, near the ditch, are three stones. The first, 16 feet in height, is on the east side. It is named the Friar's Heel, and marks the