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Rollright stones  OS ref: SP 300 310

The Megalithic Calendar alignment from the Rollright stone circle to the Whispering Knights dolmen, Oxfordshire.

The holed stone

In 1967 Alexander Thom published this survey showing that the alignment from the centre of the circle through the holed stone to the Whispering Knights indicates a point on the horizon where the first flash, (upper limb), of the Sun will rise, twice yearly, at declination -4.0 degrees.

This image through the holed stone cannot be seen today as there is a thorn tree in the way. However if an observer were to stand on the alignment at the other side of the tree this is the image that should appear at sunrise on the 11th March and 3rd October 1999.

Intermediate intervals of the Megalithic Calendar

The simulated photograph on the right shows that the Whispering Knights alignment will indicate sunrise precisely on the first days of two semi-intervals in the 16 part Megalithic Calendar. The indicated intervals are nos.9.5 & 16.5  In 1999, 11th March and 3rd October.

Sunrise Declination -4deg.

Great support would be given to this research if an independent photographer were to secure this photograph. A good set of photographs of any clear sunrise within one week either side of the above dates would be adequate as the position of the Sun can be extrapolated by computer to the correct declination.                                                                                                                                   January 1999. March 1999. Since the above prognosis was published in January 1999 a series of photographs were obtained at sunrise on the 11th March 1999 when the Sun was very near the ideal declination for the first day of intermediate Megalithic Calendar Interval no. 16.5. Although haze obscured the lower part of the sky extrapolation shows that Thom's calculations are essentially correct and that an overriding factor in the positioning of the Rollright stone circle may have been the establishment of a calendar alignment from the centre of the stone circle through the older monument, the Whispering Knights, using them as an outlying indicator. For a survey on the photographs obtained 11th March 1999 see Rollright2 or click next.

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