Watkins, an amateur archaeologist, first presented his idea of "leys" (not "ley lines") in the early 1920s after observing what he thought were non-coincidental alignments among various English towns and other sites. He propounded the idea that neolithic inhabitants had established "straight tracks" from various points to others, since roads were few and difficult to construct using early technology. Watkins pointed to various features, such as allegedly man-made notches in stones along with tumps, ponds, and even trees as evidence of "sighting points" along his "leys." The term itself was coined from a common prefix and suffix found in English place names (e.g. "Leytonstone" or "Bromley"). He also felt that many sites along these alleged leys were basically "filled in" to become towns, churches, and other settlements as a result of their proximity to said tracks. This is similar to the process by which shopping centres and other features pop up along new major roads in the USA and elsewhere.
Most archaeologists dismissed, and continue to dismiss his ideas for a variety of reasons. The main issue is that without performing significant physical (i.e. archaeological) studies of these sites it's difficult to determine which came first: the "ley" or the site. What Watkins may have been mistaken about is the idea that finding a straight line match among a lot of features on a map isn't really all that difficult, and really proves nothing unless you can find physical evidence to match. Watkins claimed, with no evidence to support it, that this system of "tracks" was later used by the Romans to lay out some of their own roads, and that the "old straight tracks" of neolithic peoples was "as old to the Romans as Roman roads are to us today."
Another problem is that, given the density of old sites in the UK and Europe, it's very easy to draw a straight line on a map and have it pass through a large number of interesting points. Numerous statistical studies (one using phone booths in London) have shown that such "alignments" are often spurious.
Watkins' ideas were largely forgotten until a writer named John Michel revived the concept in a book written during the swinging '60s, adding his own idea of mystical "lines of energy" to Watkins' concept. Thus was the modern idea of "ley lines" born, and thereafter hijacked by New Age gurus. Today, said New Age folk believe these mystical (and certainly imaginary) lines are present all around the world, with the result that Watkins' original and far more prosaic proposal has largely vanished. Those who read this book with the expectation of a discussion of New Age hokum will be sorely disappointed. However, if you're interested in learning how the idea of "leys" originally started, as well as some interesting philology around naming conventions of English place names, this is a very interesting read. Having a detailed map of the UK handy might be useful as an adjunct, however.
- Amazon Business: Make the most of your Amazon Business account with exclusive tools and savings. Login now
- Amazon Business : For business-only pricing, quantity discounts and FREE Shipping. Register a free business account
