3D scan of Stonehenge reveals hidden ax-head carvings

reply to post by Celestica


Why make them in that shape then?
It appears to be deliberate.
Why not the shape of the stone heads used at that time?

Why only on these stones, or are they still looking at others with the 3D scan?

reply to post by azureskys


Well it said "Stonehedge was given a complete scan" so I think we can assume they scanned all the stones. I'm not SH expert but isn't it meant as a kind of calendar? Perhaps their position on the stones represents a specific time, event, or place, which could explain their different sizes and designs

reply to post by Blackmarketeer


Great thread thanks Blackmarketeer.

I tend to side with you on this (and the experts) that they are indeed axe heads owing to the fact they are pretty identical to thousands from that era that we already have. I also think they may be linked to significant evens, rather than random graffiti (but you never know).

Have you seen any of the documentary "Secrets of the Stonehenge Skeletons"? The skeletons uncovered were from around that era and they were the skeletons excavated within the immediate area of Stonehenge. They know of plenty of others that they haven't even excavated yet as they are further out in the fields. Each of the skeletons is believed to belong to High Ranking tribesmen (actually also lots of women and children). Animal bones also excavated show that they travelled from all corners of Britain to attend Stonehenge too - from Northern Scotland through to South-East England. This indicates it was a sacred site (for whatever purpose) even before any possible celestial use.

Therefore perhaps each axe head marks a burial of an important figure? Pure fancy on my part, but i rather like the idea they are graves of the Elders of Mona.

you know what i first thought of? a swarm of ufo beaming the ground. maybe its a, greyhound stop for the stars. seems a legit hypothesis as any other. the axe hypothesis dont add up. the unsymmetrical nature and so on.

I think it may be significant that these carvings do not begin at the top of the monoliths...descending downwards.
All appear to be carved within human reaching distance, which might indicate graffiti, rather than an original recording of cycles or specific events.

Axe heads or BULL skulls & horns!

the number 72 could be related to the sacred number of God and his 72 names.

reply to post by Blackmarketeer


It should be noted that neanderthal was a prolific Ax maker. It was their preferred tool...and had some sort of symbolic importance to them judging by their inclusion of it in the few of their burials we have found.

Originally posted by Maarten
the number 72 could be related to the sacred number of God and his 72 names.

The number 72 almost 100% has to do with the Precession of the Equinoxes, Every 72 years we actually move backward 1 degree in axis rotation. The ancients were very aware of this .. the Mayan calendar was used to track this event ... the earth moves its rotation by 1 degree every 72 years

The precession of the equinoxes refers to the observable phenomena of the rotation of the heavens, a cycle which spans a period of (approximately) 25,920 years (72x360, as we move 1 dgree every 72 years so to do a full rotation of 360 degrees its takes 25,920 years), over which time the constellations appear to slowly rotate around the earth, taking turns at rising behind the rising sun on the vernal equinox.

And i can almost guarantee those are not axeheads but in fact mushrooms, as Psilocybin mushrooms were the Druid's religious sacrament ... just like wine and bread are the sacraments of the catholic church ... not that hard to work out really

I'm guessing the cravings depict flying swamp gasses...
Really why would they carve 72 versions of the tool they may have used to make the monument? Wouldn't that be equivalent of erecting a statue of the people that erected the statue fore mentioned? If it doesn't add up, I'm gonna go with a big fat "yeah, I don't think so."

Originally posted by Hr2burn
I'm guessing the cravings depict flying swamp gasses...
Really why would they carve 72 versions of the tool they may have used to make the monument? Wouldn't that be equivalent of erecting a statue of the people that erected the statue fore mentioned? If it doesn't add up, I'm gonna go with a big fat "yeah, I don't think so."

as i said in the post above you .. 72 refers to the precession of the equinoxes ... and the symbols are mushrooms (the druid's sacrament) not axe heads at all ... I can almost 100% guarantee I'm correct

Maybe there's an ancient evil spirit trapped inside the stone by the symbols...ever seen "The Keep"?

Originally posted by Silcone Synapse
reply to post by Blackmarketeer

 

Could they be mushrooms by any chance?
Those Druids did love their mushrooms...
Yes,that sort of mushrooms.

Except Stonehenge had and other megalithic monuments had nothing to do with the Celts, and thus the Druids. Sorry to nitpick but I was under the assumption most now understood, Stonehenge is not Druidic, Celtic, in any way shape or form. Well Beyond the Masonic like groups which gather there, because they listened to some bad history.

But certainly these later groups used Stonehenge for their own purposes, and left behind traces of their presence, so could easily be attributable to any of these later groups. I too would think most people nowadays who bother to read even one article on the currently accepted theories on Stonehenge origins would know it predates all the groups that were thought to have built it in ages past, but of course to leave markings on it only requires that it was already there, not for the graffiti artist to have had a hand in building it. :-)

And though I have no scholarly or research experience with such matters, I have a gut feeling that these seemingly randomly slapped on whatever-they-ares were made by a much later, less adept person or group than the obviously highly skilled builders of the stone phase of the henge. It seems very primitive and defacing, completely in contrast to the orderly, intentional design and layout of the site.

As for dismissing any theories of what they could represent, no one can do so with any degree of certainty. I think its fascinating to hear what everyone sees, a sort of Stonehenge Rorshach test. :-) And given the historical ubiquity of "magic mushrooms" in everything from wood cuts to drawings, I think the people postulating this explanation have just as much evidentiary weight on their side as the axe heads proponents, if not more.

And just to make sure I'm not misreading or missing it, is this the only stone to have markings revealed in the scanning project? If so, that in itself is pretty interesting - why only this stone, esp if to represent axes used in construction - surely an axe on every stone would be more instructive? If mushrooms, perhaps there was a tendency for them to grow nearest to this stone and ths it was known as the Stone of Seeing, with an illustration of what one uses to trigger the visions. :-) Kidding. and i thought at first the design was a pretty good representation of mushrooms griwing in a field, but dont psylocibin grow in circles? And aren't there other carvings that were known, perhaps a spiral or kroder? I think they were much higher up but not sure which stone they were on. I'll see if I can google it.


Good call on the number of them possibly being related to the precessional number 72, the number of yesrs it takes a star to move 1 degree or so from the same point it appeared at the same time on whatever date they used as a starting point, usually thought to be an equinoctial night. But again the seemingly haphazard nature of their placement - assuming it is as appears - contrasts to any sort of careful measurement or tracking, which I'd think would be carved in a more orderly position relative to one another.

If they merely represent simple tally marks, then why even bother with the cross, as opposed to the much easier vertical line by itself? It's not as if carving these doesn't require some effort. But just underscores how difficult it is to get in the mind of the carver(s). Is there any concensus on if the carving style supports multiple or a single carver? and how long making each mark would have likely took given the probable methods used (ie axe versus stone versus whatever other tools needed to carve into the stone)?

Doubtful we'll ever know for sure just what the maker of the marks intended, much like the intention of the original builders of the circle itself (again, as my feeling is these markings are from a far later period). but thats all part of the frustrating but inviting mystery of these ancient constructions - we can each form our own theory and reasons for their construction, and no one can really tell us we're wrong. :-)

Which leads me to recording my own idea of what the marks represent... Clearly they are are a tribute to Stonehenge's even more ancient predecessor, as I think the marks look uncannily like the T stones of Gobekli Tepe! :-) and if you position youself facing true North from below the GobTep site, this what the entire complex would look like (if all the stones were no longer buried of course), Paying tribute to the mother site, which was further back in the mists of prehistory from Stonehenge as the final phase of SH is to our own time! Fascinating are these enigmatic monuments! :-)

At first I though the marks might be a tally of human sacrifice. The different sizes made me think the largest marks could represent powerful men, on down to random males/women and the smallest, babies.

Then I noticed the formation on the right pillar. The markings seem to flow down then branch off towards the left. It reminds me of a map of settlements along a river or valley, the markings could represent small villages/larger towns.

Maybe it's a record of conquests or lineage? Imo the size of the markings represent something of lesser/greater significance.

reply to post by Blackmarketeer


great OP
i must admit that when you first posted this i SnF'd you then left well alone for all the merlin/druids/aliens gumph too get out of the way so i wouldnt get to annoyed

gotta say i agree with the profs and the posters here backing the markings as bronze axes - like flavian said large numbers of these artifacts have been recovered, and dagger markings appear on SH also, and ofc the site was in use during the broze age as well. i have not read the full pdf yet (i'm about half way through) - though if 72 marks are present, it would be no surprise as lunar and solar info is typically encoded on major stone monuments - a la knowth, newgrange etc etc. it would be countintuitive to build a humongous calendar and not have knowledge all over the thing afterall.
as for the liberty cap idea, well i spent many a day foraging when i was younger, and the resemblance is extremely tenuous, regardless of entheogen use in ancient times.
of note in the PDF though, there is a wealth of info an ancient stone carving techniques that i highly recommend to readers here - as an enthusiast of ancient crafts i particularly loved that, as well as confirmation that the so called cup-marks are infact natural features and not intentionally worked.

great post op

reply to post by Blackmarketeer


here is a pic of one excavated from the nearby Bush Barrow:



as displayed in Devises Museum
www.wiltshireheritage.org.uk...

and how they may look when hafted:

does anybody think there is validity to them being ufos coming en masse and beaming the ground? second time i mentioned it. guess it was in a spot nobody saw it....

Originally posted by mactheaxe
does anybody think there is validity to them being ufos coming en masse and beaming the ground? second time i mentioned it. guess it was in a spot nobody saw it....

as politely as possible, absolutely no chance whatsoever.

you may want to read a good book on stonehenge to eradicate all that guff

reply to post by Blackmarketeer
Interesting OP BM

The number 72 caught my eye as it divides by 12 and could possibly have had some astronomical significance or counted the months for reasons unknown?

The paper explains how the axe symbols were only found on certain stones.

The faces of various other stones were also examined using Plane
Shading and Luminance Lensing, but without success. The limited distribution of the axe-
heads on selected faces of Stones 3, 4, 5 and 53 is therefore considered genuine.

It also describes how they were carved from positions where the artists were either seated or standing – within arm's reach. This interested me so I looked at the location of the numbered stones (p12) with half an idea that they might have represented an axe symbol with 3,4 and 5 being intersected by a line from 53. It wasn't to be.

Unexpectedly, the stones are clustered in the east of the circles and that didn't work out. However I still wondered if there might be a line to be drawn through that same intersection that might point to an area of geographical or astronomical interest?

The line has a heading of east north east. There's nothing that stands out in that direction and no relationship with solstices. Struck out again.

The lack of speculation in the paper is probably because there's no reason (known to us) why the carvings would be so localised in the stones. If they had great significance, they might be expected to be more central...or more ordered. Instead we have the lingering evidence that someone, or some group, chose these particular stones to peck their images into.

That they walked from the stones numbered 3, 4 and 5 and walked past Trilithon 1 to go and carve up Trilithon 2 suggests to me that they had some form of intent and rationale.