Stone Circle

A ring of standing stones, either circular or near-circular, found in the British Isles from the Neolithic and Early Bronze Age. There are almost 1000 stone circles, some surrounded by a ditch, with the most famous examples being Stonehenge, Avebury, and Callanish. Two atypical examples are in Brittany. The standing stones which make up these circles are widely spaced; in many examples they are incorporated into a ring-bank of smaller piled stones which has one opening as the entrance. A local variant is the recumbent stone circle of Aberdeenshire in which the entrance is marked by a large horizontal stone flanked by tall portal stones. A recumbent stone is also a feature of circles in southwest Ireland, but here the two tallest stones are placed diametrically opposite the horizontal stone. Two of the Scottish recumbent stone circles have yielded Beaker pottery, while urn burials in various 'standard' circles were of Bronze Age type. Circles are often associated with cairns, menhirs, and alignments. Many have tried to interpret the complex geometric layouts and placement of the stones within an astronomical base. There has been much discussion about the validity of various theories and there is no agreement on the subject.

Term for a ring of standing stones, either truly circular or near-circular in shape. Stone circles occur in many parts of the world at different times, but in prehistoric Europe they represent a peculiarly British development About 900 examples are known throughout Britain and Ireland and datable examples belong to the Late Neolithic to Early Bronze Age. The monuments vary not only in size (from a few metres across to the huge monument of Avebury, with a mean diameter of more than 400 metres) but in shape, for as well as true circles there are ellipses and other geometrical forms which have been labelled flattened circles and eggshaped rings. A variant form called a recumbent stone circle and found mainly in Aberdeenshire has the entrance marked by a recumbent stone, flanked by two uprights. Recent work on the stone circles of Britain has concentrated on geometrical and astronomical aspects of the monuments. Work by Alexander Thom has suggested three important achievements of the communities that built the circles: (1) the use of a standard unit of measurement, known as the megalithic yard; (2) the laying out of the monuments according to certain principles of geometry, perhaps including Pythagoras’ theorem; (3) the orientation of many of the monuments on astronomical alignments, involving the rising and setting of the sun, the moon and certain bright stars. There has been much discussion about the validity of these claims and there is no agreement on the subject. Many authorities, have challenged the concept of the megalithic yard, the use of Pythagoras’ theorem and some of the more extravagant astronomical claims. However, even the most sceptical scholar would find it difficult to deny that the monuments were laid out with great care and with much concern for geometry; it is also difficult to deny that some monuments were clearly concerned with celestial events, but it is perhaps more helpful to regard them not as scientific observatories, but rather as temples where astronomical events were exploited and celebrated. See also megalithic monuments (Europe), astronomy (Europe).