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For Ceremonial purposes?
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thesweetcheat
thesweetcheat
6214 posts

Re: For Ceremonial purposes?
Aug 19, 2013, 21:08
Sanctuary wrote:
Yes of course you are correct Alken that they're not all circular, but most are.


Actually, I'm not sure that's true. A quick glance through Thom suggests more are non-circular (I'm sure someone will have the stats). For example, the central circle at the Hurlers is an oval. So is Boscawen-Un, and Tregeseal is flattened on one side.

Sanctuary wrote:
Maybe we should consider more why exactly they were erected in the positions they were. Those nearby to water you often hear claim are there because of their reverence toward the wet stuff but what about those nowhere near water, why were they erected where they are? How many times have we all said on visiting a site for the first time...'What the hell were they doing all the way out here'? Could that be connected to an astronomical use maybe?


Yes, that's the question (why are they were they are) for me. But "all the way out here" is less compelling, based on a 21st century view of the location and surroundings. In the Bronze Age, many of the circles would have been in places that are as accessible as anywhere else, with settlements and fieldsystems close at hand. Plus the temperature was warmer - Dartmoor was certainly fertile at that time, the moors of today are a largely man-made result of overfarming and the spreading peat taking over.
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