Balancing the Arts with Technology

Thursday 5 April 2007
:: Avebury/Salisbury, England::

Sir Thomas Leaf awoke without knowing his destination for the day. The plan was to be abducted by Lady Marion of Salisbury. The adventure party never heard from her since Malham, only that she would meet them at the train station and take Sir Thomas Leaf in her carriage to the stone circles. A ticket was already purchased for London, so the real plan was simply to be dropped off at the train station and let fate serve its destiny, whether it be London or Avebury. Early to rise, the party walked up and down over a hill to a food co-op to get some groceries for breakfast of porridge, eclairs, and tea. Before long, Queen Susan picked them up and carriaged them to the depot. As they pulled up they spied Lady Marion weirdly chatting with Sir Robin the Fool. Robin was meeting them there and spied Lady Marion from the adventure photos. He had went up to her and said in his serious, yet comical nature ... "I recognize you by your bum"; of course Lady Marion said "Excuse me?" and he told her he saw digital pictures of her bum. How quaint is that? So hugs and farewells were made, Sir Thomas Leaf knowing he'd be missing his Lady Vanessa and his comrad-in-arms Ingo, and the Royal family as he sets off to his journey to meet the mighty ones and to break the enchantment on the ring. Lady Marion abducted Sir Thomas Leaf into her carriage and off across the countryside for a 6 hour drive to Salisbury. From there, he would catch a train to London, explore the crazy city, and on saturday depart for his home in the American wild west. He would return again to Europe, per chance maybe again this summer for Castle Party, otherwise not again till next year when him and Lady Vanessa will take a trip to the Alps and to explore France. An enjoyable road trip was had with Lady Marion and Sir Thomas Leaf, minus several stops along the route dealing with a potentially overheating engine. Around 5 pm, they made Avebury, parked, and hiked around the circle. Sir Thomas Leaf was imbued with the energy of the ancients - feeling those of who once wandered here, the magical and empowering energy of the stones. Then as they walked around the defensive ring and atop the gully, there they were ... the mighty ones ... the elders .... a ring of sacred trees, calling for Sir Thomas Leaf's audience, he climbed up within them, felt their energy, heard their calling, and knew what he had to do. He took the cord, found the faerie in the branches, and tied it amongst the branches with the saying of the sacred words to break the enchantment that was cast on the Lady of the Rhine's ring. The spell was lifted. Lady Vanessa was freed and was once again back to her royal self. There was hope to learn the secret of recovery from the illness of jetlag from the mighty ones ... but they had nothing to share on the subject. Lady Marion and Sir Thomas Leaf then headed off towards Salisbury with a stop-off at Stonehenge. The tunnel and visitor center had just closed, so they had to admire the monuments from the road. Sir Thomas Leaf was in his glory. He knew he'd return to this spot again. Then as the skies slowly started to darken, they arrived in Salisbury to check out train tickets to London. While Sir Thomas Leaf wanted to stay longer and take Lady Marion's offer of staying in Salisbury, due to Good Friday delays with the train projected ... he knew he should continue on to London, plus he didn't want to miss the registration hours at the hostel. He said farewell to the sweet and wonderful Lady Marion. He hopped the train to London - meeting a family from the States who had purchased their tickets to London six months in advance for $199.00 each round-trip. With envy, Sir Thomas Leaf realized he should plan ahead earlier for the next trips. 2 hours later he arrived in London and switched trains to Oxford Circus. The streets were truly a circus so it was adequately named. He found the Oxford Street hostel, and while registration was closed (it was past 10:30 pm) a night attendant checked him in. He met his bunkmates from Spain. Dressed up nice and wandered around Oxford Street in search for music, dance, and drink. He hit "The Bunker" - a post punk, new wave, glam trash night where he got his soo needed fill of "britpop and post punk" music. Danced a bunch, drank a bunch. It was a good night. He went back and crashed around 4 am. His bunkmates didn't return till 6'ish. A day of exploring London ensued with many more adventures to be told in a different tale from Jack the Ripper to a near-miss mugging in the park, an Italian guido giving away leather jackets, museums, and a long flight home. Sir Thomas Leaf had the most splendid of trips ever. And of course, our adventurers lived happily ever after .... Stonehenge

Sir Thomas Leaf at Avebury ... The Mighty Ones A fairy tied amongst the branches

The White Horse
:: Avebury, England ::

In the pictures below you will see a chalk impression of a white horse embedded into the hill. This is the White Horse, located near Avebury, Wiltshire County, England. England is spotted with these white horses cantering over the Wiltshire chalk hills around Avebury and Stonehenge. The Cherhill white horse was created in 1780 by cutting away the grass on the hill and using the chalk to create the shape of a horse. It's located on the edge of Cherhill Down off the A4 road from Calne to Marlborough. The tradition of the white horse has been practiced for centuries - horses carved into the chalk hillsides, and while many have disappeared through neglect, there are eight of them that can still be seen today: Westbury, Cherhill, Pewsey, Marlborough, Alton Barnes, Hackpen, Devizes, Broad Town, and Pewsey. The Oldest white horse in the West isn't in Wiltshire - it's at Uffington, a few miles over the border in Berkshire. It was noticed later through time that this particular horse at Uffington was similar to the horses decorating Iron Age Celtic cauldrons and coins found in Marlborough and Aylesford. The Celts worshipped the horse goddess Epona, or her Western counterpart, Rhiannon. The white horse was used to symbollize her and pay tribute to her. It's believed that the British had over-farmed their lands and were very concerned about it becoming less fertile. There were periods of desolation and infertility that led to catastrophe. Some theorize that the people who had built the vast ceremonial temples of Stonehenge and Avebury came up with these horses as offerings to Epona (or Rhiannon) for blessings upon the land. It is believed by some that they left their farmlands and became horsemen and mounted warriors who lived in hill forts eating what they could hunt or gather. The white horses were representative of a statement of defiance or celebration because the horse liberated them. On horseback, there was no boundaries ... they could travel far and wide quickly.
The Westbury horse was cut in 1788, though believed to replace an earlier horse cut into the hillside 900 years before Alfred the Great's victory over the Danes at Ethandune. The truth is not known. The remaining horses were cut in the early 19th century, though its believed the two at Pewsey only date to 1937. The art of hill carvings spread into other animals in the more modern usage - soldiers camped on Salisbury Plain during WWI left their own poignant marks by cutting their regimental badges into the chalk hillsides. A new White Horse trail has been created that links all 8 of the still-visible horses on a 90 mile circular way marked route for walkers and cyclists.

Avebury, the Village
Avebury, Wiltshire, England
A village and civil parish located in Wiltshire and is the home of the world famous Avebury stone circle. It's population is about 486 based on a 2002 census. It of course prospers from the tourism that is brought in from its monuments and history.

Silbury Hill
Avebury, England
Located near Avebury is also the monumental "Silbury Hill". This is the largest prehistoric man-made mound in Europe. A gigantic 40 metre high grass-covered chalk dome, with a base diameter of 160 metres. Scholars estimate that moving the half million tons of chalk to construct the hill took 4 million man hours over 50 years. It is believed that Silbury Hill was probably a sacred mound dedicated to the Mother Earth religion. Today, climbing the mound is not permitted though photography is permitted. The hill is believed to have been created about 4,600 years ago. Chalk is the main construction material. The original deduction that it was a burial mound has been disproven as there have been no bodies found at Silbury.

Avebury, Wiltshire, England (between Marlborough and Calne)

There is of course Avebury, the large henge and several stone circles as well as a village. Avebury was the location of the second-largest open-air temple in prehistoric Britain, and was probably built some time between 2500-2000 BCE (Before the Common Era). There is a humungous ditch that was built around the temple: consisting of over 100 standing stones that were placed just inside this, enclosing an area of about 10 hectares. There are also two smaller circles of stones that were built inside - parts of which can still be seen today. There would have been several hundred stones in total in the original structure, but most of these were broken up in the Middle Ages or later: the stones which can be seen today were discovered and re-erected in the 1930s. Avebury is one of the finest and largest Neolithic monuments in Europe and is considered by many scholars to be 5,000 years old. Avebury is older than the megalithic monument that is so popular and called Stonehenge which is about 32 km or 20 miles to the south.

The best surviving remains at Avebury is the earthworks also referred to as defensive works or dykes. This is a massive ditch and external henge 421 m in diameter and 1.35 km in circumference that encloses an area of 115,000 square metres (28.5 acres) - the ditch is 21 m wide and 11 m deep with its primary fill carbon dated between 3400-2625 BCE. Excavations have demonstrated that it was enlarged at least once in its lifetime. In the henge itself is a great Outer Circle that is the prime example of prehistory's largest stone circle with a diameter of 335 m / 1100 ft. Scholars believe it was built around 4-5 centuries after the earthworks were constructed. The Outer Circle is believed to have consisted of 98 sarsen standing stones - some weighing in excess of 40 tons, varying in height from 3.6-4.2 m tall. Fill of the stoneholes date from 2800-2400 BCE.

The Mighty Ones, The Elders, The Prayer Tree
The trees around Avebury are seen very sacred, especially this circlet of trees up atop the dyke/fortification that serves as the outer boundary of Avebury. Here, the trees look mystifying, elderly, knowledgable, and powerful. It is here that people of all faiths make offerings to their gods, sometimes by putting fragments of cloth, flags or other offerings in trees as prayers or wishes. The ribbons, cloth, medallions, and fairies tied to these branches are such offerings. Some used in spells, others in prayers, others in wishes - all for the effect of gaining that which is asked for. It's similar to the money tree or wish tree. Especially powerful practice in the Pagan traditions during the celebration of Oimelc (Feb 2 or 3 (depending on astrological date) - a.k.a. Brigid's Mass or Day) if you leave out strips of cloth or ribbon tied to a tree or to a door, Bride or Brigit will bless them as she passes giving them healing properties.

Today, Avebury is a spiritual center to those practicing Paganism, Wicca, Druidry, and Heathenry and is often a center seen more relevant to these ways than Stonehenge. A plethera of Pagan festivals are held here annually that attract many visitors and tourists, most notably the summer solstice draws the largest crowds. As with Stonehenge, access is often contested - while Avebury is open to all, while Stonehenge access is very restricted. Its a major monumental study of sacred sites in world history, especially with contested rites/rights on who can access what and how. Since The National Trust stewards and protects the site - the National Trust is very active in dialogue with the Pagan community who uses the site as a religious temple or place of worship and is regulated by the National Trust's Avebury Sacred Sites Forum.

The Northern Inner Ring is 98 m in diameter, though only two of its standing stones remain with two further fallen ones. A cove of three stones stood in the middle with its entrance pointing northeast. The Southern inner ring was 108 m in diameter and almost all of it was destroyed with sections of its arc now beneath the village buildings - but a single large monolith 5.5 m high stood in the center with an alignment of smaller stones until they were destroyed in the 18th c. The avenue of paired stones, is called "West Kennet Avenue" leads from the southeastern entrance of the henge and rances a second "Beckhampton" avenue that leads out from the west. The henge had four known entrances - two opposing ones on a north, northwest, south, southeast line and two on a east, north, east-west, southwest line.

Stonehenge
Near Amesbury and Salisbury, England
One of the most famous prehistoric monuments of England next to Avebury. The megalithic monument is located on the southern part of Salisbury Plain (about 8 miles - 13 kilometres - north of Salisbury). Scholars believe that the site was used as a ritual site or temple from 2800 - 1100 BCE (Neolithic Age through the Bronze Age). The monument was constructed with sarsen stones that are believed to have come from the Marlborough Downs (about 20 miles - 32 kilometres - to the north), and estimated to have been built in about 2000 BCE. The most accepted theory stated that there was needed more than 1,000 men to transport the stones. Many of the stones from the original temple are no longer there: they may have been broken up in the time of the Romans or in the Middle Ages.

Stonehenge is composed of earthworks surrounding a circular setting of large standing stones and is one of the most famous prehistoric sites in the world. In 1986 the site and its surroundings were added to the UNESCO's list of World Heritage Sites along with Avebury. The monument is believed to have been built in several construction phases spanning 3,000 years. Archaeologists have found 4-5 large Mesolithic postholes that date to around 8,000 BCE nearby, under the modern tourist car-park that had held pine posts around .75 m in diameter that were erected and left to rot in situ. 3 of these were in an east-west alignment. The first monument consisted of the circular bank and ditch enclosure measuring 110 m in diameter with a large entrance to the northeast and a smaller one to the south. Archaeologists have uncovered deer and oxen bones as well as worked flint in the bottom of this ditch that are believed to have been used as tools to create the monument. The chalk dug from the ditch was piled up to form the bank around 3100 BCE. In the outer edge was dug a circle of 56 pits all about 1 meter in diameter known as the Aubrey holes that may have contained standing timbers creating a timber circle (though there is no archaeological evidence for that postulation that antiquarian John Aubrey made). At least 25 of the Aubrey holes were found to have contained later, intrusive, cremation burials dating to the two centuries after the monument's creation making Stonehenge the earliest known cremation cemetery in the British Isles. Fragments of human bone have also been found in the ditch fill with Late Neolithic grooved ware pottery. The remains of the 2nd phase has deteriorated and is no longer visible and consisted of a number of postholes dating to ca. 3000 BCE that some form of timber structure was built within the enclosure. Standing timbers were also placed at the Northeast entrance and a parallel alignment of posts ran inwards from the southern entrance. Similar to the Aubrey Holes, though only .4 m in diameter and much less regulary spaced.

Around 2600 BCE it is believed that timber was abandoned in favor of stone and two concentric crescents of holes were dug in the center of the site holding up to 80 standing stones - 43 derived from the Preseli Hills 250 km away. Small sarsens believed to have been used later as lintels were believed to have been added at this time. Large 4 ton stones brought from long distances have been found to contain spotted dolerite, rhyolite, tuff and volcanic and calcareous ash - each measuring 2 m in ht, 1 m and 1.5 m wide, around .8 m thick. The Altar Stone - a 6 ton block of green micaceous sandstone, twice the height of the bluestones, is believed to have come from either South Pembrokeshire or the Brecon Beacons and may have stood originally as a single large monolith. The NE entrance was widened at this time to precisely match the direction of midsummer sunrise and midwinter sunset. The Heelstone, four Station Stones, and barrow mounds (no burials within), and the Avenue leading to the River Avon might have been erected at this time as well.

From 2450-2100 BCE was the addition of 30 enormous sarsen stones brought in from a quarry about 24 miles north that were dressed and fashioned with mortise and tenon joints before 30 were erected as a 33 m diameter circle of standing stones with a lintel of 30 stones resting on top. These were joined together using a woodworking method called 'tongue in groove joint'. A total of 74 stones were believed to have been used to complete the circle (many are missing today). Within this circle stood 5 trilithons of dressed sarsen stone arranged in a horseshoe shape 13.7 m across with its open end facing Northeast and arranged symmetrically. Images of a dagger and 14 axe heads have been recorded carved on one of the sarsens that show style similarities to Bronze Age weapons. During the Bronze Age, bluestones appear to have been re-erected for the first time and placed within the outer sarsen circle.

From 2280-1930 BCE there was an rearrangement of the bluestones placing them in a circle between the two settings of sarsens and in an oval in the very center well spaced uprights without any of the linking lintels accomplished earlier. From 2280-1930 BCE the northeastern section of the bluestone circle was removed creating a horseshoe shaped setting known as the Bluestone Horseshoe. 1600 BCE was the last known usage of Stonehenge during the Iron Age where Roman coins, prehistoric pottery, and an unusual bone point and a skeleton of a young male (780-410 cal BC) were found as well as the burial of a decapitated Saxon man in the 7th century.


Stonehenge is riddled with myths and legends - even mentioned in Arthurian Legend. Today it is a place of pilgrimage for neo-Druids and those following Pagan or Neo-Pagan beliefs who started using the circle in the 1870's, and the first modern Druidic rite dating to 1905 with the Ancient Order of Druids. After the Battle of Beanfield in 1985 - use of Stonehenge was stopped for several years, and Druids were given the right to worship at the stones again only in recent years under careful monitoring. Stonehenge is now surrounded by a fence to protect it as a World Heritage Site. Various Druid orders are still permitted to this day to be able to practice their ceremonial rites at the monument during the Winter and Summer Solstices. Current public outcry is currently dealing with the development of two highways that run along both sides of the monument, causing an eye and ear-sore, as well as potential vibrational damage to the monument.In 2003 the Department for Transport began planning for the Stonehenge road tunnel that will place the highways underground.