Over a decade ago a lecturer from Reading University was on holiday in Scotland. Whilst visiting one of the megalithic structure he noticed that the structure had acoustic properties. After returning to his university he reported the matter, causing the university to investigate this and all other structures. Thus, this information comes not from amateurs (with limited knowledge and resources), but from professionals from a respected university with far greater knowledge and resources to make a far more detailed investigation.
In you apply their discoveries with information from other sources what you find is that whoever built these structures had advanced knowledge of acoustics and that these were connected with solstice rituals. Noise produced at certain points within a stone circle are reflected off the stone columns back to that point, turning the stone circle into a loud speaker that amplifies sound by 300%. This is only possible because of the manner in which the stone had been cut. Which means that the rough cut odd shaped rocks used at such structures were that way through acoustic design, not as the result of poor skills in stone cutting. Likewise the smoothed sides of Stonehenge's outer stone columns disperse sound, while the irregular cut convex surfaces reflects sound back into the centre of the ring.
Tumulus structures such as Newgrange (also called Brugh na Bóinne and built around 3,200 BC) were designed to not only produce an echo, but when the noise was of a resonant frequency of between 95 HZ and 112 HZ the noise is amplified (with an average of 110 HZ, but all resonant frequencies were found to be at the bottom of the male baritone). The design of each tumulus causes it to act as a Helmholtz resonator, the result of which is that any major source of external noise at the appropriate resonant frequency (such as a strong wind or the sound from a thunder storm) that passes the tumulus entrance creates an amplified noise, an effect identical to that produced when blowing over an empty bottle.
Within some of these tumulus structures the remains of drums have been found and when reconstructions of these same drums were played it was found that the sound was reflected off each wall. However, because of the acoustic design, the drum beats not only create areas of sound amplification within the anti-chambers (where the dead were placed), but also standing sound waves which cancel each other out to create an area silence where people would stand. This also causes a Helmholtz resonance to occur at an infra-sonic frequency of 2 HZ, which though below the range of human hearing does have a direct physical effect on the human body producing feelings of giddiness, dizzying, nausea, hallucinations and uneasiness. If this noise was created as part of some religious ritual then anyone suffering such effects could easily believe they were in a trance or on a journey into the otherworld.
Since such tumulus structures were aligned so that either the Solstice Sun would illuminate the tumulus entrance, it is believed that the acoustic design and rituals are directly connected with the Solstices. This is because the standing sound wave coming from passage grave directly effects any dust inside the tumulus or incense fires outside the passage grave entrance, causing them to move according to the sound wave. When illuminated by the rising Sun the dust and incense make the sound wave visible to the human eye. When this standing sound wave was graphically represented on a computer it was found to have twelve peeks and troughs, which when viewed from the side matched perfectly the chevron and zig-zag line rock art found at Newgrange, while when viewed from above matched perfectly the concentric circles also found at Newgrange (circles that were a great influence on Celtic Art). This circle is also represented in triskele form on the walls of the Western and Eastern chambers, but not only are both perfectly aligned with the other but are both in alignment with the Moon when its sets on the horizon every 18.6 years as part of the Lunarstice (the Moon's equivalent of the Sun's Solstice).
According to Celtic mysticism and cosmology the light of the Sun entering Newgrange on the morning of the Winter Solstice is connected with the Sky Father (Lugh) and the darkness of night is connected to the Mother Goddess (Danu), then this lunar connection likewise relates to the Mother Goddess. Thus it is believed that during such a Lunarstice that the souls of those whose bodies were placed within Newgrange, would obtain rebirth in the next world. It is important to note that within Newgrange there are three anti-chambers, two represent the ovaries of the Mother Goddess, whilst the third along helps form a cross, which though normally associated with Christianity is also a pre-Christian symbol for the Cosmic tree of life. Thus, Newgrange's internal design also serves to symbolise the Mother Goddess's connection with nature and the tree of life.
Those believed to have built the first structures which started the megalithic culture were the original inhabitants of Ireland (better known as the "Sen Érainn" or "The Old Erainn"), whose descendants are the various tribes, clans and septs who originate from County Munster. While to understand why these were built you need to understand aspects of Celtic cosmology. Although partly influenced by Sen Érainn the main originators of what is define as Irish Druidry were the Fomorians who within Irish texts are believed to have been an group of Egyptians who intermarried with Indo-Europeans living in Thrace, who migrated out of Thrace and eventually settled in Ireland.
According to Celtic mysticism water was believed be the first principle of all things and had existed in a pure form before the creation of the world, but was made impure after coming into contact with the earth. The mystical sympathy that existed between the soul of humankind and the purity of water caused water to be worshipped. The Celts regarded air as the home of beings of a more spiritual nature than humans, while fire was seen as a vital principle brought into action at the time of creation. The earth was worshipped because it was the mother of all life, while trees were seen as physical evidence of the earth's productive power. The sky and the forests were the temple of the deities as the Celts believed that no deity could not be confined within the limits of the enclosed space of a building. This belief derives from the fact that universally the forest is seen as symbolizing the feminine principle and is the realm of the psyche and the dead, a place of testing and initiation, the cosmos in its entirety, the place in which are contained the secrets of nature and the spiritual world. While within the Celtic tradition it is also a place where the Sun and the forest are married as male and female, light and darkness. Neolithic stone columns, megalithic and tumulus structures also serve as places of sexual union for the Mother Goddess and Sky Father, but each differing slightly in the method used.
Stone columns (such as the Lia Fáil at Tara) represent a phallus which constantly penetrates the soil and thus the Mother Goddess ensuring fertility of the land. Megalithic structures (such as Stonehenge) serve the same purpose, only this time the Mother Goddess is represented by stones placed in a circle (representing a cervix, vagina and womb, but round to symbolize the Earth Mother in a state of pregnancy) which is penetrated by the Sky Father by means of the shadow of a tall stone (representing the male phallus) produced at the dawn of the Summer and Winter Solstices. Tumulus structures also serve this purpose but the tumulus represents the procreative powers of the Mother Goddess in which the narrow passageways that penetrate into the ground symbolize the vagina and womb of the Mother Goddess, while the side chambers into which the bodies of the dead are placed symbolize the ovaries of the Mother Goddess. Each tumulus is aligned so that on the morning of each Solstice a shaft of light from the rising Sun (the sky father) penetrates the roof box over the entrance of the narrow passageway causing the Mother Goddess and the Sky Father to be united in intercourse, thus renewing the fertility of the land.
The interior of many tumulus sctructures were built in the shape of a cross (representing the tree of life), whilst stone circles represented the Mother Goddess in a state of pregnancy, however if both were constructed above ground in such a manner that one is interposed on the other then the resultant construction would be that of a Celtic Cross such as the Callanish Stones in Scotland (built around 1,000 BC). Thus, all these structures from Newgrange, Stonehenge, etc., were all built for rituals of symbolic magic, intended to cause their deities to make the land and animals fertile, so they'll have food to eat.
One can only imagine the profound spiritual symbolism and significance such a combination of light, sound, sight and physical feelings would have had on the pre-historic mind. Perhaps one dare speculate that upon the Solstice day, as the light of the Sky Father impregnated the womb of the Mother Goddess, which they in their minds believed that they were seeing and hearing the power of their deities. Despite the passage of thousands the majority of these sights are still working to this day.
Regardless of want we each think about who built these structures or how they got the knowledge, you can't help but be impressed. But I'll bet you'll never watch "The Flintstones" in the same way again. |
