no one knows why our ancient ancestors erected this huge circle of standing stones. some weigh up to 40 tons and the stones form an almost perfect circle about a mile in circumference. the circle itself is surrounded by a wide earthwork ditch which in turn is enclosed by a high mound (I'm guessing this is the earth extracted from the ditch.)
not that I'm superstitious but each time I've visited it's been a bit spooky. on this occasion, it was a beautiful cloudless sky - that's why we decided to go! - within a mile of the site, it became overcast with thick grey swirling cloud which remained, more or less, all the while we were there. As soon as we came away, the sky became bright and blue once more. :-0
4 comments:
Oh.. lovely. I was there at Avebury years and years ago. Very atmospheric place. All of England felt to me as if it were thick with ghosts. Nowhere I set my feet felt like new ground. It had all been trodden a million times before. Even the stone steps are all worn away. Lovely country. I'm going back one of these days to see more of it.
Ian, these are wonderful photos.
For some reason, when I look at them for more than 30 seconds, clouds begin to arrive in the scene and all becomes dark.
Just kidding, but I do like your description of your experience...
ghosts is often the feeling i get with these historic places, anne. not the whooo-whooo kind with sheets over their head or even those who carry their head under their arm, but a sense of overlaying existences.
one of the special things at avebury is you can go up to the stones and touch them. just think how many people over time have done that same thing? from the travelling beggar to the kings of england! it's a famous site of historical curiosity, it would have attracted all sorts.
on this occasion, as i say, it was a rare and glorious day and there were many visitors, so the feeling was diluted.
but on our previous visit we were virtually alone at the site - just this older couple we passed - because it was a fairly gloomy late winter's morning.
as we approached from the car park, there was an eery silence then all of a sudden and as if premeditated, all the rooks sprang from the bare treetops making a hell of a racket. it sent the hairs up on the back of your neck.
thanks, gary. glad you like the photos. :o)
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