Stonehenge, GB (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
It seems that there has been a couple of new discoveries at Stonehenge.
The researchers, Jon Wozencroft (of the musical publishing company, Touch) and Paul Devereux (currently working on a book, Drums of Stone, which will tell the full story of musical rocks in ancient and traditional cultures) believe that Stonehenge can be described as the first real musical instrument – after the voice and basic drums. Such sonic or musical rocks are referred to as ‘ringing rocks’ or ‘lithophones’. Follow the link above and you will be able to hear sound tracks of the researchers making “music.”
In Wales, where the stones are not embedded or glued in place, the tones made by the stones when struck can be heard half a mile away. It has been theorized that Stone Age people living in Wales might have used the rocks to communicate with each other over long distances, as there are marks on the stones where they have been struck an incredibly long time ago.
‘It is not controversial to say that prehistoric people would have known of the stone’s capabilities. We can see indentations on the rocks – the area is amazingly untouched,’ he added.
English: Woodhenge. Concrete pillars mark where the original wooden posts would have stood… (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/channel/a-night-of-exploration/videos/beyond-the-stone-circle/
This discovery adds to the previous discoveries of another stone circle now being referred to as Bluestonehenge by the Stonehenge Riverside Project. Excavations have revealed that the new stone circle is 10m (33 ft) in diameter and surrounded by a henge – a ditch with an external bank. Some of the bluestones that once stood at the riverside probably now stand within the centre of Stonehenge. The Stonehenge Riverside Project is made up of a consortium of university teams and directed by Professor Mike Parker Pearson from the University of Sheffield. Parker Pearson is featured on both the National Geographic and Nova programs regarding this research.
The theory that the River Avon linked a ‘domain of the living’ – marked by a timber circle named Woodhenge and houses upstream at the Neolithic village of Durrington Walls discovered by the Project in 2005 – with a ‘domain of the dead’ marked by Stonehenge and this new stone circle. This is because pottery, animal bones, food residues and flint tools used in domestic life during the Stone Age were absent.
Professor Mike Parker Pearson said: “Our ongoing excavations at sites near to Stonehenge suggest that the famous stone circle is part of a large, interconnected group of similar sites, linked by their proximity to the river Avon.
Prof. Julian Thomas, co-director, added: “The implications of this discovery are immense. It is compelling evidence that this stretch of the River Avon was central to the religious lives of the people who built Stonehenge. Old theories about Stonehenge that do not explain the evident significance of the river will have to be re-thought.”
I believe we can interpret the landscape and the rituals as concretization of the universal spiritual model. The river Avon serves as the axis mundi. Stonehenge represents the realm of the dead or the cloud of unknowing. Woodhenge represents the realm of the living or place of the life force that resides at the base of the spine. The archeological evidence proves that ancient peoples were well aware that the road runs both ways.
My book, "Jesus' Wedding: A Peek into the Inner World Shrouded behind the Mystical Veil," will detail this universal system that explains all myth and spiritual symbol. It is planned to debut in December 2012. You are welcome to view the excerpts, models, and and photographs that are currently available on my website. http://www.JesusWedding.com
Jesus’ Wedding 
Mischa – I learned a lot in this post that I didn’t know before, thank you. I recently wrote a post “Stonehenge Mushrooms” that you might enjoy: http://wp.me/pP1C5-1eB
That is really interesting! I didn’t know that there are standing stone circles in Africa. I’ve learned something new too. Thanks!
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