Visiting the Callanish Stones

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I was checking around for a view of the Callanish stones for Jpinmilwaukie and I found this interesting description of a coming Lunar Phenomena. Having enjoyed the spectacle of the last lunar eclipse (Go Red Sox), I thought I might enjoy seeing this. Very Happy

-- 2006 on the Isle of Lewis --
Every 18 and a half years, a moonlit event culminates in the appearance of the "Earth Mother"
.

Sounds like an event, doesn't it? 'Course, you might make your plans to go and then the skies would be cloudy, but I might, I might just go there. An interesting goal, anyway, and I have always wanted to see Lewis.

http://www.stetson.edu/artsci/religion/lucas/images/stone_circle/callanish5s1.jpg

I don't know the date and time but apparently...

Quote:

Every 18 and a half years, a moonlit event culminates in the appearance of the "Earth Mother", a figure seemingly outlined in the shape of the hills south of Callanish. Local people call the image 'Sleeping Beauty' in English or 'Cailleach na Mointeach' in Gaelic - which translates as 'The Old Woman of the Moors'. After rising over the Earth Mother, the moon passes through the Callanish stones two to five hours later. As this happens, if a person stands on the hillock at the higher south end of the site, the moon is "reborn" with a person silhouetted within it.

I'd like to hear about anybody's visits to the Isle of Lewis, especially if they've seen the Callanish Stones.

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Wed 13 Oct 2004

Callanish Stones to star in rare lunar broadcast

JOHN ROSS

THE mysterious Callanish Stones in the Western Isles will be the centrepiece of a live broadcast being planned to capture a rare lunar event.

The standing stones on Lewis have intrigued archaeologists and historians for 6,000 years. Erected by Neolithic farming people, they are believed to have a special association with the cycle of the moon.

The site includes a central circle with four limbs running out in line with the points of the compass. Some of the stones are said to be aligned with the sun and moon at various times of the year and could have been used to predict eclipses and the coming of the seasons.

Every 18 and a half years, a moonlit event culminates in the appearance of the "Earth Mother", a figure seemingly outlined in the shape of the hills south of Callanish. The next is due in 2006.

After rising over the figure, the moon passes through the Callanish Stones and, as this happens, if a person stands on the hillock at the higher south end of the site, the moon is "reborn" with a person silhouetted within it.

Victor Reijs, an archaeo-cosmo enthusiast, plans to broadcast the 2006 event worldwide via the internet and is on Lewis gathering support to set up a web cam.

Source

Since there has been bad weather/clouds over all (Western) Europe that day ... 18 ½ years, you said? :wink:

That hole there

http://www.sacredsites.com/images/final56/368.jpg

or better:

"The round window-like opening shown in the photograph has been demonstrated to have significant celestial alignments, including a view of the moon at its northern extreme and the sun at sunrise on the summer solstice."

is close to my place (and had been part of the 'visting-tour' with Mrs. and Mr. Steve (as 41oo) just a week ago).

Externsteine

http://www.sacredsites.com/images/dec2000/Extern2.jpg

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Wow. Walter -- that is fantastic! Thanks for telling me about this place. I would never have imagined anything like that in Germany. Very beautifully wrought carvings & observatory.

Mr. & Mrs.Steve must have had a wonderful time. I hope he comes back to a2k when he gets his computer sorted out. Please send him my greetings. When you visited Externsteine, did you spot any celestial phenomena together?

---
Thanks also for the Scottish website. I haven't been able to find out just when this event at Callanish is supposed to occur. I'm thinking, if it happens every 18 1/2 years, then it must be at the big swings of the azimuth readings for moonrises... and also that it is in the winter one cycle and in spring the next. Where's an astronomer when you need one?

I'd sure be interested in finding out. How else can I plan my trip?? Maybe I will take a sidetrip & visit Externsteine, too. Wink

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I'm not sure, if this is really a celestial phenomen, but going the stps downwards is more difficult then climbing - especially on a sunny autumn Sunday afternoon in the school holiday period :wink:

Piffka wrote:

Maybe I will take a sidetrip & visit Externsteine, too.

For and with you, I even would go up both of 'towers'!

<Going down in the cellar to continue apple polishing there> :wink:

(I just noticed that I already had posted that link already: http://www.able2know.com/forums/about24223.html

And, btw: the cathedral in Aachen [Aix-la-Chapelle] is in the centre of the line from the Externsteine and Stonehenge.)

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Walter... Well, that does sound difficult -- being there with a raft of school children & their families. I liked the way the author said to go surreptiously in the evening (though it sounded a little eerie). If I can make it to Germany, you know I will. It would be awesome to see this, especially with such a knowledgeable guide as yourself.

<Love those polished apples!>

That's very interesting about Aix-la-Chapelle being on a "ley line" between Stonehenge & Externsteine. Truly amazing (for me) to think of how these ancient sky-watchers made their connections.

Do you know of any other similar sites in Germany?

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There are a couple of places, which (still) have a significant relation tot the Celts and Germanics.
(However, especially those from the Celts are quite rare and mostly only live along in legends.)

A journey into megalithic and mystical Germany

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Just added one of my photos to the Gallery:

http://www.able2know.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10045/Externsteine%20Herbst%20a.jpg

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That is a gorgeous picture, Walter! I didn't realize you were such a good photographer. That gives an amazing perspective of Externsteine, much different from any of the photos I saw on the website. Is there anybody we know in that photo?

I will check out the link a little more. Thanks for that. I didn't realize there were stones with "cup-marks" in Germany. Never thought of it... so busy with all the interesting things in Scotland! I was surprised to see that they were possibly clan marks. There were clans in Germany?

I still don't quite understand how those gigantic rocks could have been moved so far and placed so carefully. The "why" is also a mystery... I love it!

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I've been told that the clans were in Germany before they were in Scotland. That's probably family/tribal mythology, though.

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I just took another look at the last site Walter posted. I may have photos from Osnabruck with some of those stones from a trip about 30 years ago. Must poke around in the albums.

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ehBeth wrote:

I've been told that the clans were in Germany before they were in Scotland. That's probably family/tribal mythology, though.

At least, the Celts come originally from (Southern/Middle) Germany (and Austria, of course).

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Yup. I was told that's how some of them got their red hair. From us!

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And you got the sharp tongue (actually, I'm thinking more of "Haare auf den Zähnen" :wink: ) from ... Laughing

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Hair of the ...teeth?... Very Happy

My Mother had bright red hair, as did her father. I thought it was a Scottish thing.

I hope you can find your pictures, ehBeth.

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Just remembering Europe's oldest astronomical observatory, which was discovered in Saxony-Anhalt two years ago: built about 7,000 (3,000 years earlier than Stonehnge!).

Nice model from the Spiegel:

http://www.spiegel.de/img/0,1020,409432,00.jpg

----------

Report from 2003

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Thanks, Walter. That is a gorgeous rendering. Are those wooden posts?

Can you translate for me?

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There's an inner wooden and an outer palisade.

Within the entrances, they found cranial bones from cattle, thus thinking that these bones were used as special cultural and/or decorating elelments.
When this all was erected 7,00 years ago, the bull's head of the zodiac sign of 'Aldebaran' [Taurus] was at the time of Midwinter Night exactly between the two posts of the south-eastern gate [lower left one].

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Hmmm, those astrological roots run so deep, don't they?

Thanks, Walter. I'll go searching for more about this place (in English!).

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Piffka wrote:

I'll go searching for more about this place (in English!).

The only pages I've found, are more or less copies/summaries from a DW-article.

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Visiting the Callanish Stones

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