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Stonehenge [Hardcover]

John North (Author)
4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)


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Hardcover, October 9, 1997 --  
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Book Description

0684845121 978-0684845128 October 9, 1997
Stonehenge has fascinated mankind for centuries, enveloping generation after generation in its haunting mystery. But while much has been learned about this ancient monument, the fundamental questions remain: Who built it? What was its purpose? How was it used?

Drawing on more than 15 years of research, John North has at last succeeded where others have failed. He comprehensively examines Stonehenge from all available angles -- archeological, astronomical, and spiritual -- and considers relevant research from other prehistoric remains in Britain and Northern Europe. He shows, for the first time, that the stones were not so much sighting devices as maps of the heavens and that the design of the monument evolved over thousands of years rather than conforming to a single original blueprint. Such observations form the basis of deductions about prehistoric life and religion that will profoundly affect our understanding of who we are and where we came from.


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Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

North (history and philosophy of science, Gronigen Univ., Netherlands; The Norton History of Astronomy and Cosmology, LJ 7/94) brings his distinguished background in astronomy to this study of Neolithic monuments. His aim is "to discover certain patterns of intellectual and religious behavior through a study of archaeological remains that seem to have been deliberately directed in some way towards phenomena in the heavens." Most of this book is a painstakingly detailed on-site investigation. Judging from the scale of Stonehenge and other monuments that incorporated astronomical alignments, North argues that the heavens played a central place in Neolithic and Bronze Age religion. While this major achievement belongs in all collections on Stonehenge, only the most tenacious general reader will persevere to the end.?Joan W. Gartland, Detroit P.L.
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Kirkus Reviews

Mysterious Stonehenge has been a magnet for theorists of every stripe for centuries. This new interpretation, by a historian of science (Groningen Univ., the Netherlands), argues that it was both an astronomical observatory and a map of the heavens. Actually, North's net is spread much wider than the title suggests. He begins with a discussion of the structure and orientation of long barrows (or mounds) and ends up examining almost every class of prehistoric megalithic monument on the British Isles as well as some in Western Europe. North has little patience with the idea that the megalith-builders were crude workmen, citing some of the better-preserved monuments that have precise alignments of various points with certain fixed stars. He finds a historical progression from the early long barrows to the later stone avenues and rows, with henges (circular enclosures first made of wood, then stone) the culmination of the tradition. Stonehenge itself evolved over some 2,000 years, and North provides a complete inventory of its components and reconstructs the various stages of its growth. The sight lines through the stone rings are carefully diagrammed, and various astronomical relationships spelled out. Finally, the author brings together his various themes in a discussion of the astronomically based rituals and beliefs he feels we can deduce from the evidence he has compiled. The wealth of detail here, combined with copious diagrams and calculations, is likely to overwhelm the reader who is not familiar (at least through other books) with the monuments under consideration. And while North pays due homage to folklore and other colorful accretions to the subject, his highly technical approach makes this a book many casual antiquarians are more likely to skim than read. An important contribution to the literature of this fascinating subject, then, but more for the specialist than for the common reader. (212 line drawings, 29 photos, not seen) -- Copyright ©1997, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

Product Details

  • Hardcover: 656 pages
  • Publisher: Free Press (October 9, 1997)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0684845121
  • ISBN-13: 978-0684845128
  • Product Dimensions: 9.6 x 6.4 x 1.5 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 2.1 pounds
  • Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,666,674 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Average Customer Review
4.6 out of 5 stars (5 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars A definitive look at Stonehenge, December 3, 1999
By A Customer
This review is from: Stonehenge (Hardcover)
This is not the easiest book to read. John North is so painstakingly detailed that I occasionally had to set the book aside and let my mind rest a while. Once I finally was able to get all the way through, however, I was very glad I had made the effort. North has given us a definitive look at Stonehenge.

North starts with a fairly simple premise: In order to truly understand Stonehenge one should first study the many other comparable structures built in Britan and Europe during prehistoric times. North slowly works his way through these structures before finally arriving at the ultimate destination: Stonehenge.

The conclusions he finally reaches about Stonehenge are at once startling and fascinating. For instance, he shows that observations were not done from within the Stonehenge circle, but from a point many meters outside the circle.

I could go on, but suffice it to say that if you have ever been curious about Stonehenge, North's book is a must read.

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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars A Labyrinth of Data, January 7, 2004
By 
Although John North is to be congratulated on his diligence and tenacity in researching and producing this book, I have to say that it is heavy going and his infinitely detailed measurements and conclusions are so mutually entangled that it's very hard to form a clear picture of his conclusions and hence determine whether his science is really as soundly based as he claims. Part of his trouble is the very wide scope of the book. There is material for several substantial books crowded into this one and I feel sometimes the wood gets lost for the trees. Moreover the many drawings of alignments scattered through the pages are frequently lacking in clear notation. This is a pity, because I would like to believe most of the conclusions that I understand. His argument for rising star alignments on many monuments appears to stretch credibility; what about the obscuration of stars by atmospheric density close to the horizon? And for the Uffington White Horse, which I've visited many times and know well, he claims an alignment along a modern road, citing that it may well have followed an earlier track? Proof?
But it is a serious attempt to understand the minds of early architects and their society's relationship to the heavens, and as such is a very welcome addition to the growing archaeo-astronomy corpus.
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7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Finally, The Truth, July 4, 2000
By 
Linda K. Rossmaier (Hermitage, TN United States) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Stonehenge (Hardcover)
Mr. North exceeds my expectations in his book on the inhabitants of this magnificent area. Although it was at times tedious and heavy in the astronomical sense, I am an amateur astronomy buff so his interpretations were not totally lost to me. The most amazing breakthrough noted by Mr. North is our arrogance as a literal society to assume their intelligence as minimal due to the lack of a written legacy by these brilliant and sensitive people. Additionally, he subtley proposes that we should not judge the Stonehenge people as one because of a few isolated finds of deviant tribal rituals. The cosmological affect on the beliefs and practices of this era is well documented in Mr. North's book. Aristotle would have understood their aptitude given the tools and skills of the time. Nature is the most perfect teacher and the most accurate. Bravo Mr. North
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Inside This Book (learn more)
First Sentence:
IN all of those ancient cultures from which written records survive, worship of the dead seems to have been bound up not only with religion, but with law and custom generally. Read the first page
Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
grand trilithon, crosswise viewing, sarsen ring, barrow lozenge, revetting posts, viewing altitude, southern standstill, artificial horizon set, lunar extremes, sarsen monument, timber henge, scaling posts, numerous post holes, midwinter setting, southern ditch, sarsen uprights, trilithon lintels, timber monument, bluestone horseshoe, midsummer setting, midwinter sunset, mortuary house, major standstills, minor standstills, northern ditch
Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Wayland's Smithy, West Kennet, Altar Stone, Durrington Walls, Slaughter Stone, Fussell's Lodge, Bronze Age, Kennet Avenue, Windmill Hill, Mount Pleasant, Bush Barrow, White Horse, Greater Cursus, Long Man, South Street, Iron Age, Stonehenge Datum, Alexander Thom, Richard Atkinson, Silbury Hill, William Stukeley, Rigel Centauri, Beckhampton Road, Hazleton North, Lesser Cursus
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