Wednesday, October 17, 2012


England's Uffington chalk horse is believed to date from the bronze age, about 3000 years ago.  Mentioned as early as 1072 in the cartulary of Abingdon Abbey, the hill it stands on was called the mons albi aqui.  

Interestingly, nearby is a stone known as the "blowing stone," which will make a booming sound when a person with the requisite skill blows correctly into one of the holes that perforate it.  It is further said that King Alfred used it to summon his Saxon troops to battle the Vikings, and that anyone who can make the stone heard at the nearby Uffington white horse will be the future king of England.






Located on Woodhouse Crag in West Yorkshire, this is known as the swastika stone, and is thought to have been carved by Celtic troops hired by the Romans and stationed nearby at Ilkley Moor.  This design is unique to the British Isles, but are very similar to others carved by Celts then living on the Adriatic coast, and it is believed that the Romans hired these nearby Celts as mercenaries, and then posted them to the far away British Islands.


At Ballintaggart, Dingle, in Ireland, we find this Ogham stone, in the shape of a cross.  Ballintaggart is an old Christian site ( Ballintaggart means 'The priest's townland'), and Ogham is an ancient linear script, and was the first known written language of Ireland.

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