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Book Description
Why were stones brought all the way from Wales?
What is the secret geometry of seven eights?
Packed with rare old engravings and new research, this enlightening little read for wizards of all ages by renowned author and lecturer Robin heath will leave you fascinated, amused and amazed!
From the Publisher
The biggest breakthroughs often happen in the smallest ways. If you have always wanted to understand Stonehenge but have never quite managed it, then this is the book for you. Eclipses, sacred geometry, ancient culture, stunning engravings and the very latest explosive new research are packed into this beautifully produced, 100% recycled, small volume. Renowned author and respected researcher Robin Heath does it again: you'll be fascinated and amazed! --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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Customer Reviews
Heath isn't a pundit pursuing puzzles; instead, he offers a brief analysis of current knowledge about this 5,000-year-old site. His comments are to the point, obviously meant to introduce teen readers the great science and abiding mystery of Stonehenge. For youth, it is a fair introduction that also offers enough to whet the appetite those who will become interested in further study about one of the enduring mysteries of history.
Unfortunately, his apparent contempt for competent anthropologists weakens the value of his book. Heath doesn't seem to understand the origins of urban culture date to at least Catal Huyuk and Jericho some 7,000 years ago, and probably long before that. The great stones of Stonehenge, which began as a "wood" -henge similar to hundreds of other "woodhenges" throughout England, are rather recent compared to other great ancient works.
The great puzzle of Stonehenge is not its existence, but why it was built of stone when hundreds of others were built of wood. Of course, the reason may be as simple as understanding why the Vatican has artwork by Michaelangelo and my local church has sketches by Joe Sixpack. Sadly, Heath overlooks this fundamental aspect as do most interpreters of the site.
The value of this book is its brevity, its "factoid" format consistently offers interesting snippets of information. The weakness is mixing an unsupported point-of-view with that brevity, it raises the question of whether unsubstantiated speculation is better than open-ended imprecision. It's a minor quibble, certainly not a reason to pass up this book.
Fifty years ago, teachers thought ideas such as "continental drift" were total fantasy. Now, they're accepted orthodoxy. Likewise, current speculation about the use and meaning of Stonehenge may be orthodox in 50 years (or 500 years) -- if that happens, it may be the result of some young student inspired by a book such as this.
It's a buy. If it whets your appetite, many other books can provide a fascinating range of greater depth and diversity. If not, you'll still learn a lot about the sophistication of the English long before they learned to write -- but apparently could calculate complex astronomical details.
The treatment of some of the 'science' which has attempted to explain the form and function of the monument is a little uncritical but the major questions are identified. There is also a refreshing excursion into the 'Alternative Stonehenge, the loony fringe of dotty archeology', however Druids get never a mention!
The book is copiously illustrated with drawings either antique or in the antique style which are informative but in some cases, frustratingly small.
Listmania!
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