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This anomaly, (which may, at first, look like an error
in design), turns out to
form an excellent cowling for the smoke hole, which will cause the smoke
hole
to draw better. For this arrangement to work best, the back of
the cowling
should face into the prevailing wind. This is exactly what we find at
the site: the
prevailing wind on Salisbury Plain comes from the south-west. The
cowling
has its back facing into the wind. This arrangement of the log rafters
for this
section also provides more volume of backfill to be placed on the
south-west
side. This means more insulation on the side facing into the wind as is
sensible. |
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This cowling arrangement suggests the question:
Was Stonehenge oriented towards the midsummer sunrise because ,
(well choose your theory here; calendar, solar observatory, lunar
observatory, sun worship, etc. etc.),
or
Was the midsummer sunrise direction a simple way to remember which
way to orient your shelter so that your best insulation and smoke
hole cowling are facing into the wind as would be sensible?
It would be easy to pass this information from generation to
generation:
"If you want to stay warm, face the midsummer sunrise
and your back will be into the wind." |
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E) Final covering of
branches, sod,
rubble and clay is placed over the structure. |
That this resultant uber-pithouse is also
suggestive of a "super-barrow" is not a observation that should be
fleetingly regarded. |
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Traditionally held dogma tells us that the
hundreds of barrows surrounding Stonehenge are all tombs and that
not a trace of the locals' dwellings survive.
This, of course, can be understood to be extremely unlikely,
at best.
The next chapter explores the barrows as dwellings and the rash of
plagues prevalent at the time
that might have ultimately resulted in the majority finally ending
up as tombs. |
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Alternate Version |
As would be similar to many other barrows
constructions, (Maes Howe being a classic example), |
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the spaces between the ring sarsens could have
been walled up and the area surrounding backfilled with rubble. This
uses a much smaller amount of timber for the central roofed area but
does still result in the cowling contour.. |
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