Building a Stone Circle

[Ailim]

I have been given the opportunity to create a stone circle within a restricted environment. It will be a simple circle with a basic 4 standing stones marking the quarters and a central flat stone for the altar.

The area is not large, and we are planning a circle where 10 or 12 people can comfortably stand with arms wide (hopefully).

At the moment the site is grassland, with trees around it. It is planned to have a serpentine path leading between/through some trees leading to the circle - even though the space is wide open. I believe this to be important as it will allow each person to slowly wind down and connect to the spirit of the place before they reach the circle itself.

The pathway will, in time, be flowered with wild flowers and shrubs.

It will not be a dedicated druid grove, but open to all Pagan paths, as it will be used as a Pagan sacred space.

I was led to the site on Beltane day (1 May 2009) and next week the circle should be marked out, possibly with small stones until we can get the larger standing stones dug in.

I've been told that ideally the North stone should be aligned with the true North Pole - not the magnetic one. So I'm assuming my little compass will be useless for this. As I'm hopeless with this sort of thing, please could someone advise me on how I should go about this?

Bright Blessings,

[skh]

Hi Ailim,

I've never done this either, but you could find a map of the area where the declination (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magnetic_declination) is marked. Or go there in a clear night and look out for the Northern Star, which is (according to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polaris) at most 0.7° off.

Sounds like an inspiring project!

peace /|\
Sonja

[Dathi]

Greetings,
Brilliant thing to be doing.

Sounds like this is what you need....
Stone Circles, A Modern Builder's Guide to the Megalithic Revival - Rob Roy

Well priced copies are available here: http://www.megalithic.co.uk/shop/earth_ ... _books.htm

CFN,
Dathi

[Dryadia2]

Wonderful Ailim!
Just a thought...You could always align the North stone halfway between magnetic, and true north.
And please post photos of your progress!

Peace and Blessings,
/|\

[Ailim]

Not sure that I would be allowed to take a camera inside, it's a prison So that also prevents me, or the residents, being able to take a fix from the Northern Star at night.

However, aligning to a point between magnetic north and true north from a compass might do the trick.

Thanks also for the links, been reading about the declination stuff and my head is spinning already

PS: Just ordered Rob Roy Stone Builder's Guide

[mwyalchen]

(Edit:) Well, I posted suggesting you go out to the centre of your circle one clear night and take a sighting to the pole star; but I see someone else got there first!

[Tynan Elder Oak]

How amazing is that then!

Will be sending light energy to aid your construction and bless you for your integrity. /|\

[Corwen]

What a great project, well done. I haven't seen Rob's book, but I helped build a stone circle in Sussex many years ago with him and Ivan Macbeth which was a very interesting experience for everyone, as we were moving these 15 and 20 ton stones about by hand, There was a great learning curve, the first stone took 100 people 2 days to move a few feet and stand up, the last was moved by just a dozen people in less than a day. Could you write a review of the book for us all if you have time?

[Badger Bob]

Brings a whole new meaning to "Jailhouse Rock"...I'll get me coat!

About the Pole Star, if you have a baseplate compass you could take a bearing on it somewhere near the site (or even at home, the difference is minute) and then keep the bearing or write it down until you get onto the site during the day (a bit of sellotape to stick the compass housing to the baseplate will do the trick). When you are on site just line up the needle with the stripes on the housing and the baseplate will be pointing to Polaris. The difference in location is absolutely negligible compared to the light-years of distance to the star so the angular correction would be almost infinitesimal. There is a tiny difference as the axis of rotation of the earth is not exactly in line with Polaris but again for all practical purposes this is negligible.

Good luck, it sounds like an exciting and worthwhile project.

[Badger Bob]

I have just checked, Polaris is currently 0.7 degrees off the north celestial pole but if you take a bearing at midnight (gmt) then Polaris will be on that bearing at both midnight and midday throughout the year. Well, sort of anyway...ish!

Sorry, it's the OCD talking again...

[Fox]

Method one : scientific compass measurement, using modern technology

As usual, there is a website that will calculate your declination:

http://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/geomagmodels/Declination.jsp

You have to know your latitude and longitude, but there is a link to a website where you can work that out too.

Current declination at Dunbar, Scotland is 3 degrees 30 minutes W.

The declination is the angle between true north and where your compass is pointing (magnetic north). It differs from place to place, obviously, so mileage will vary. This means that my compass is point 3 degrees and 30 minutes west of true north.

Get a proper compass - you know you want one! It has degrees marked on it. The dial will have a little red marker on it. Line that up with the angle of declination (it'll be counterclockwise from True North.) Then line the compass up with the red line on the dial. The North arrow on the main housing of the compass will now point to True North.

Method two: stick and shadow, using stone age technology

Alternatively, put up a stick in the prison courtyard where you will be building the circle. Wait until noon GMT (that's 1 pm BST) on a sunny day, then put a second stick at the apex of the shadow cast by the first stick. (Get a guard or prisoner who happens to be out there to do this if you can be there at 1 pm). The line between the two sticks runs true north and south, or near as dammit. I don't need no stinking compass - I'm a druid!

Do the stick thing now before the sun gets higher in the sky and the shadow gets shorter ...

[Blaiddwen]

Hello Ailim,
When I was visiting Wayland's Smithy, JJ asked me if I could tell which direction was which since I had just arrived on the island. So after taking a look around I simply pulled out my pendulum and let it show me which was which, JJ had a bit of a chuckle at that one. It might be worth giving a pendulum a go at it.

cheers,
Blaiddwen

[Badger Bob]

Method two: stick and shadow, using stone age technology

Please, please don't forget to use a straight stick placed vertically in the ground. My old Venture Scouts tried this with a bent stick leaning about ten degrees off vertical and then immediately dismissed the idea as unreliable. I was sorely tempted to straighten the stick over their heads.

There is also that joke with the punchline "I was only taking a bearing officer", to which you will have to imagine the set-up...

[Fox]

Method two: stick and shadow, using stone age technology

Please, please don't forget to use a straight stick placed vertically in the ground. My old Venture Scouts tried this with a bent stick leaning about ten degrees off vertical and then immediately dismissed the idea as unreliable. I was sorely tempted to straighten the stick over their heads.

There is also that joke with the punchline "I was only taking a bearing officer", to which you will have to imagine the set-up...

LOL! I assumed Ailim would have enough smarts to use a straight stick and stand it vertically. Use a plumb bob if you want to be reasonably vertical ...

[Ailim]

Thanks for the advice and info. May try and get into situ before 1pm Friday (if its sunny) and see what happens with the sticks

[Ailim]

Greetings,
Brilliant thing to be doing.

Sounds like this is what you need....
Stone Circles, A Modern Builder's Guide to the Megalithic Revival - Rob Roy

Well priced copies are available here: http://www.megalithic.co.uk/shop/earth_ ... _books.htm

CFN,
Dathi

Thanks again for that link, Dathi. It's a beautiful book and worth getting, if only to see the many circles he has built.

Today, I was at the circle, which has now been temporarily marked out with small stones. The central altar stone, a large flat stone that will probably need about 3 men to move into its permanent position, had been placed near the centre. The morning had apparently been very wet, yet when I walked through the trees to the circle, it was warm, and the sun rose up and it was beautiful. So peaceful.

In the SE there is an oak tree - still young but already towering over me. Further out in the SW side there is a Rowan tree growing. There are other trees all around the area. I did an impromptu blessing, thanking the Goddess for the circle that will become a sacred place. You might say I was floating on my way back to the Chaplaincy.

It is hoped that we will be able to get the 4 standing stones from the local quarry, and of course we have to get that North stone aligned

Will update as we progress.

[skh]

Method two: stick and shadow, using stone age technology

Alternatively, put up a stick in the prison courtyard where you will be building the circle. Wait until noon GMT (that's 1 pm BST) on a sunny day, then put a second stick at the apex of the shadow cast by the first stick. (Get a guard or prisoner who happens to be out there to do this if you can be there at 1 pm). The line between the two sticks runs true north and south, or near as dammit. I don't need no stinking compass - I'm a druid!

For this method you need to know the local time of the place (unless it is indeed on the Greenwich meridian) to know when the real noon happens. The easiest way to find out the difference to GMT would of course be to observe when the sun is exactly in the (true) south... or ask the internet:

http://wwp.greenwichmeantime.co.uk/info/bristol-time.htm

peace /|\
Sonja

[Ailim]

Thanks Sonja, as a Bristolian myself I've seen that clock many times, and remember my father explaining to me about Bristol Time, but only knew we were 10 mins behind, not about the meridian difference.

[skh]

How thoughtful of the people back then to install that clock just in the same city where you, in the present, need to know the precise local time in order to erect a stone circle I know of no other place stubborn enough to keep the memory of the time before synchronised time-keeping alive.

peace /|\
Sonja

[Ailim]

Last Friday I did some tree spotting The trees closest to our circle are: In the NE a young 15ft oak tree, with a couple of lime trees, to the west is an established maple tree and beyond that is a huge cedar tree, SW is a huge birch tree and in the south are rowan and cypress. There are other trees around the area so the location feels secluded without being hidden (security wise).

I'm hoping for a date when I can go to the local quarry to choose the standing stones. I've asked for 9ft stones, so with 1/3rd buried that would allow 6 ft above ground, which considering our circle diameter isn't large, would be an ideal size (without looking out of place).

Last Friday we did the awen chant over the central altar stone, and what a difference it was. Normally we'd be in the multi-faith room which in the summer gets very stuffy and hot. Just to be out side in the fresh air - the awen just flowed

btw Corwen, I think Rob Roy's book is an excellent source of advice about building stone circles, and would definitely recommend it.