Recumbent stone circles
editA recumbent stone circle is a type of stone circle constructed in the early Bronze Age. The identifying feature is that the largest stone (the recumbent) is always laid horizontally, with its long axis generally aligned with the perimeter of the ring between the south and southwest.[1][2] A flanker stone stands each side of the recumbent and these are typically the tallest stones in the circle, with the smallest being situated on the northeastern aspect. The rest of the circle is usually composed of between six and ten orthostats graded by size.[3] The builders tended to select a site which was on a level spur of a hill with excellent views to other landmarks.[4] Over seventy of these circles are found in lowland Aberdeenshire in northeast Scotland – the most similar monuments are the axial stone circles of southwest Ireland. Recumbent stone circles generally enclosed a low ring cairn, though over the millennia these have often disappeared.[2] They may have been a development from the Clava cairns found nearby in Inverness-shire and axial stone circles may have followed the design.[5][6] Whilst cremated remains have been found at some sites, the precise function of these circles is not known.[7]
References
editCitations
edit- ^ Welfare (2018), pp. 314–315.
- ^ a b Welfare (2011), pp. 1, 31, 33–37, 236.
- ^ Welfare (2018), pp. 314–215.
- ^ Burl (1969), pp. 58, 75.
- ^ Welfare (2011), pp. 252–255.
- ^ Burl (2000), pp. 41, 256.
- ^ Bradley (2005), p. 105.
Works cited
edit- Bradley, Richard; Phillips, Tim; Arrowsmith, Sharon; Ball, Chris (2005). The Moon and the Bonfire: an investigation of three stone circles in north-east Scotland. Society of Antiquaries of Scotland. ISBN 0903903334. – available online
- Burl, Aubrey (1969). "The recumbent stone circles of north-east Scotland". Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland. 102: 56–81. ISSN 2056-743X.
- Burl, Aubrey (2000). The Stone Circles of Britain, Ireland, and Brittany. Yale University Press. ISBN 0-300-08347-5.
- Welfare, Adam (2011). Great crowns of stone: The recumbent stone circles of Scotland. Edinburgh: Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland. ISBN 9781902419558.
- Welfare, Adam (2018). "Recumbent stone circles". In Burnham, Andy (ed.). The old stones: A field guide to the megalithic sites of Britain and Ireland. London. ISBN 9781786781543.
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