Thornborough: Stonehenge Of The North!?
- Thread starter gyrtrash
- Start date
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I can't believe it!
'Tarmac' have submitted another planning application to quarry around the henges!
For Fucks sake!
Unbelievable!
This has been reckoned by some to be the largest prehistoric earthworks in Britain and it's treated like shit.
I don't geddit... how can this place be treated like this?
(that's the biggest 'earth' mystery to me!)
'Tarmac' have submitted another planning application to quarry around the henges!
For Fucks sake!
Unbelievable!
This has been reckoned by some to be the largest prehistoric earthworks in Britain and it's treated like shit.
I don't geddit... how can this place be treated like this?
(that's the biggest 'earth' mystery to me!)
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Sign up, sign up!
You can add your name to the online petition against the destruction of the henges, here;-
http://www.petitiononline.com/Pet10001/petition.html
Gwan! You know you should...
You can add your name to the online petition against the destruction of the henges, here;-
http://www.petitiononline.com/Pet10001/petition.html
Gwan! You know you should...
- Joined
- Dec 27, 2001
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English Heritage have said this is the most important site between the Orkneys and Stonehenge. If the henges were in Wiltshire this wouldn't have got to such a sorry state...
The future of the Thornborough henge complex is looking bad. Discoveries recently unearthed suggest it was the religious center of the north...
I can see kids in the not-too-distant future saying 'How did you let this happen?'...
I don't want to have my kid's ask me this question.
http://www.heritageaction.org/?page=campaigns_thornborough
The future of the Thornborough henge complex is looking bad. Discoveries recently unearthed suggest it was the religious center of the north...
I can see kids in the not-too-distant future saying 'How did you let this happen?'...
I don't want to have my kid's ask me this question.
http://www.heritageaction.org/?page=campaigns_thornborough
Save Thornborough Henges
Hello everyone,
I am George Chaplin, Thornborough Campaign Coordinator for Heritage Action (http://www.heritageaction.org), I come to ask for your help with a most urgent matter - the campaign to stop Thornborough Henges from being quarried.
In a little over a month the future of Thornborough henges will be decided by North Yorkshire County Council as they will meet to decide on Tarmac's quarrying application for Ladybridge.
We believe that it is of critical importance to get the online petition as high as possible by this time, so we are asking for members of this board to make it a priority this week to get as many signatures on the petition as possible.
The petition is here:
http://www.petitiononline.com/Pet10001/petition.html
If you have not already heard of Thornborough, this 5,000 year old site is Britains largest ritual complex - three huge circular earthworks apparently built to mirror Orion's Belt. The land surrounding the henges is filled with the burial mounds, ritual areas and settlements of the thousands of people who attended rituals here so many years ago. Thornborough was possibly Britains first religious capital - it is the centre of the largest henge complex in Britain.
Tarmac announced in 2002 proposals to surround the henges with it's gravel quarry - destroying all archaeology hidden in the surrounding landscape and leaving the henges as "islands" surrounded by bogs and lakes.
The first phase of this plan - the Ladybridge extension has been submitted as a planning application and the decision making process will begin on the 26th of October - the first planning meeting.
Many people are expecting the council to defer it's planning decision pending Tarmac's submission of it's archaeological investigation (withheld) and the after use strategy for the land. But Tarmac know that in order for planning committees to turn down an application they must be presented with a firm reason to do so - by not submitting the archaeological report or the after use strategy they have avoided giving the committee reasons to refuse permission.
Tarmac are expecting the application to be granted pending delivery of the reports - this would be a great blow for Thornborough as a clear message would be sent to the public that the battle was lost.
We therefore need to use every opportunity to show the level of feeling against this proposal.
Please help, get your friends, family and workmates to sign, ask any online folks you know to sign and lobby online groups. This is a critical point for Thornborough - if this application is granted, Tarmac have stated that they intend to ask for Thornborough Moor (all remaining land surrounding the henges) to be made a preferred area for quarrying - this, if granted would mean evey inch of the henges ritual landscape, associated monuments and setting will be destroyed - forever.
More information at http://www.heritageaction.org/thornborough.html.
Also, exclusive images here:
http://www.heritageaction.org/?page=campaigns_thornborough_thornlady
Hello everyone,
I am George Chaplin, Thornborough Campaign Coordinator for Heritage Action (http://www.heritageaction.org), I come to ask for your help with a most urgent matter - the campaign to stop Thornborough Henges from being quarried.
In a little over a month the future of Thornborough henges will be decided by North Yorkshire County Council as they will meet to decide on Tarmac's quarrying application for Ladybridge.
We believe that it is of critical importance to get the online petition as high as possible by this time, so we are asking for members of this board to make it a priority this week to get as many signatures on the petition as possible.
The petition is here:
http://www.petitiononline.com/Pet10001/petition.html
If you have not already heard of Thornborough, this 5,000 year old site is Britains largest ritual complex - three huge circular earthworks apparently built to mirror Orion's Belt. The land surrounding the henges is filled with the burial mounds, ritual areas and settlements of the thousands of people who attended rituals here so many years ago. Thornborough was possibly Britains first religious capital - it is the centre of the largest henge complex in Britain.
Tarmac announced in 2002 proposals to surround the henges with it's gravel quarry - destroying all archaeology hidden in the surrounding landscape and leaving the henges as "islands" surrounded by bogs and lakes.
The first phase of this plan - the Ladybridge extension has been submitted as a planning application and the decision making process will begin on the 26th of October - the first planning meeting.
Many people are expecting the council to defer it's planning decision pending Tarmac's submission of it's archaeological investigation (withheld) and the after use strategy for the land. But Tarmac know that in order for planning committees to turn down an application they must be presented with a firm reason to do so - by not submitting the archaeological report or the after use strategy they have avoided giving the committee reasons to refuse permission.
Tarmac are expecting the application to be granted pending delivery of the reports - this would be a great blow for Thornborough as a clear message would be sent to the public that the battle was lost.
We therefore need to use every opportunity to show the level of feeling against this proposal.
Please help, get your friends, family and workmates to sign, ask any online folks you know to sign and lobby online groups. This is a critical point for Thornborough - if this application is granted, Tarmac have stated that they intend to ask for Thornborough Moor (all remaining land surrounding the henges) to be made a preferred area for quarrying - this, if granted would mean evey inch of the henges ritual landscape, associated monuments and setting will be destroyed - forever.
More information at http://www.heritageaction.org/thornborough.html.
Also, exclusive images here:
http://www.heritageaction.org/?page=campaigns_thornborough_thornlady
A
Anonymous
Guest
A worthy cause indeed Mr Caplin. I wish you all the best with it.
(Mods, could this be stickied for a month or so?)
(Mods, could this be stickied for a month or so?)
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- Jul 27, 2001
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- 845
I second that request. This site and the furore surrounding the planning request have already been discussed on the board and I think it's something that many posters feel strongly about.
Nice to see you guys are in the know.
We now have a simple objection letter writing kit on the Heritage Action website. I recommend you use this opportunity to voice your concerns.
Does anyone here organise talks for groups? I do one entitled "Henge Capital of Britain" that I think you'd find interesting.
We now have a simple objection letter writing kit on the Heritage Action website. I recommend you use this opportunity to voice your concerns.
Does anyone here organise talks for groups? I do one entitled "Henge Capital of Britain" that I think you'd find interesting.
- Joined
- Jun 2, 2002
- Messages
- 944
A more comprehensive article appears in the Ripon Gazette:
Horses find shows that we are not riding roughshod through archaeology - Tarmac
Quarry firm Tarmac has faced bitter criticism from campaigners fighting to protect the prehistoric Thornborough Henges and has been accused of destroying archaeological remains in the same area. But nothing could be further from the truth, the company tells Lee Sobot.
Earlier this year, the skeletal remains of four horses were discovered at Nosterfield Quarry, near West Tanfield.
A fragment was sent for carbon dating in Scotland and the recently revealed results tell us that the horses date back to the Iron Age - in this case about 50AD.
The horses were lying nose to tail, suggesting something remarkably ritualistic about the find. The skeletons are now being stored at Kings Manor in York, part of the University.
Discoveries like this are rare, highly significant and of major archaeological interest.
So who discovered them? It was Tarmac, the firm that stands accused not caring about the archaeology of the area.
Tarmac say discoveries like these are proof they want to preserve archaeology, quite the opposite of destroying it.
"Quarrying in the UK has provided us with a massive amount of archaeological finds" says Mike Griffiths, the site's archaeologist employed by Tarmac.
"I have been doing this since the 1960's and I am happy to say that more archaeological information has come through quarrying than any other source".
Mr Griffiths began looking at the Nosterfield Quarry and Ladybridge Farm sites ten years ago. He is paid by Tarmac to ensure they are not quarrying land containing significant archaeology. He must also ensure any archaeology found is removed and recorded.
Over the years, field walking, test pitting, trial excavations, geophysical surveys and sieving and sampling have been among the performed by Mr Griffith's team.
The discovery of four Iron Age horses at Nosterfield Quarry proves that Tarmac and Mr Griffiths are doing their job and the skeletal remains are by far the most significant discovery on the site.
But Mr Griffiths says he can assure campaigners, including Friends of Thornborough, that similar finds are unlikely to exist at Ladybridge Farm, set to be quarried in 2006 if planning permission is granted. After years of research he says he knows best.
"The Iron Age horses are a significant find and are probably connected to the Romans," he says.
"But there is not as much archaeology here as people say. We have done the work, we have done the topsoiling and we know. I get really annoyed when people say Tarmac are not bothered about archaeology and just want to bulldoze their way through - people have misconceived what Tarmac are about."
"We strip the area first to check for archaeology and every single discovery is recorded and reported."
Mr Griffiths says that, unfairly, he and Tarmac are on a loser as regards any archaeological investigations, despite the fact that Tarmac have spent £420,000 researching the archaeology of Nosterfield Quarry and Ladybridge Farm. If archaeology is found "we told you so" will be the response from campaign groups like the Friends of Thornborough. If not, Tarmac will be seen to be quite literally, hiding the facts.
"Now we are producing the results of our archaeological studies and we are not producing the picture that people want to see," says Mr Griffiths.
"But we are producing the real picture. A lot of emotion has got into this but we are producing the facts and it is time that some of that emotion was diffused."
A huge file on the table is bursting with extensive archaeological research, and Mr Griffiths says Tarmac has stopped at nothing to ensure meticulous studying has taken place. Tarmac is now preparing to present the council with a detailed evaluation report of Ladybridge early next year. It will say there is little significant archaeology and what there is is scattered.
Rob Moore, estates manager for Tarmac Northern says "We have gone well beyond the legal requirements in our research."
As well as arguing there is little archaeology on Ladybridge Farm, Tarmac say there are numerous other reasons why quarrying on Ladybridge must go ahead, and leading them is demand.
Horses find shows that we are not riding roughshod through archaeology - Tarmac
Quarry firm Tarmac has faced bitter criticism from campaigners fighting to protect the prehistoric Thornborough Henges and has been accused of destroying archaeological remains in the same area. But nothing could be further from the truth, the company tells Lee Sobot.
Earlier this year, the skeletal remains of four horses were discovered at Nosterfield Quarry, near West Tanfield.
A fragment was sent for carbon dating in Scotland and the recently revealed results tell us that the horses date back to the Iron Age - in this case about 50AD.
The horses were lying nose to tail, suggesting something remarkably ritualistic about the find. The skeletons are now being stored at Kings Manor in York, part of the University.
Discoveries like this are rare, highly significant and of major archaeological interest.
So who discovered them? It was Tarmac, the firm that stands accused not caring about the archaeology of the area.
Tarmac say discoveries like these are proof they want to preserve archaeology, quite the opposite of destroying it.
"Quarrying in the UK has provided us with a massive amount of archaeological finds" says Mike Griffiths, the site's archaeologist employed by Tarmac.
"I have been doing this since the 1960's and I am happy to say that more archaeological information has come through quarrying than any other source".
Mr Griffiths began looking at the Nosterfield Quarry and Ladybridge Farm sites ten years ago. He is paid by Tarmac to ensure they are not quarrying land containing significant archaeology. He must also ensure any archaeology found is removed and recorded.
Over the years, field walking, test pitting, trial excavations, geophysical surveys and sieving and sampling have been among the performed by Mr Griffith's team.
The discovery of four Iron Age horses at Nosterfield Quarry proves that Tarmac and Mr Griffiths are doing their job and the skeletal remains are by far the most significant discovery on the site.
But Mr Griffiths says he can assure campaigners, including Friends of Thornborough, that similar finds are unlikely to exist at Ladybridge Farm, set to be quarried in 2006 if planning permission is granted. After years of research he says he knows best.
"The Iron Age horses are a significant find and are probably connected to the Romans," he says.
"But there is not as much archaeology here as people say. We have done the work, we have done the topsoiling and we know. I get really annoyed when people say Tarmac are not bothered about archaeology and just want to bulldoze their way through - people have misconceived what Tarmac are about."
"We strip the area first to check for archaeology and every single discovery is recorded and reported."
Mr Griffiths says that, unfairly, he and Tarmac are on a loser as regards any archaeological investigations, despite the fact that Tarmac have spent £420,000 researching the archaeology of Nosterfield Quarry and Ladybridge Farm. If archaeology is found "we told you so" will be the response from campaign groups like the Friends of Thornborough. If not, Tarmac will be seen to be quite literally, hiding the facts.
"Now we are producing the results of our archaeological studies and we are not producing the picture that people want to see," says Mr Griffiths.
"But we are producing the real picture. A lot of emotion has got into this but we are producing the facts and it is time that some of that emotion was diffused."
A huge file on the table is bursting with extensive archaeological research, and Mr Griffiths says Tarmac has stopped at nothing to ensure meticulous studying has taken place. Tarmac is now preparing to present the council with a detailed evaluation report of Ladybridge early next year. It will say there is little significant archaeology and what there is is scattered.
Rob Moore, estates manager for Tarmac Northern says "We have gone well beyond the legal requirements in our research."
As well as arguing there is little archaeology on Ladybridge Farm, Tarmac say there are numerous other reasons why quarrying on Ladybridge must go ahead, and leading them is demand.
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- Dec 27, 2001
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Heritage Action Media Release - 19th October 2004
A 5,000 year old ceremony is to be recreated this week as campaigners carry an ancient ceremonial axe through Yorkshire's "Sacred Vale" to Thornborough.
"The area between Catterick and Boroughbridge can claim to be Britain's first great religious and ceremonial centre" said George Chaplin of Heritage Action. "It contains Britain's largest concentration of prehistoric henges, vast circular earthworks that were used as ceremonial meeting places. We are staging a march through this "Sacred Vale" to highlight that the area is an immensely important part of our local and national heritage and that plans to quarry the surrounding archaeology are akin to vandalism."
The trek will take place on Friday and Saturday 22nd and 23rd of October and takes in all of the original ancient ritual landscape - seven mighty henges and a giant stone row, as well as many other monuments that line the route. The route focuses on the mile-long triple henge monument at Thornborough, the location of a bitter battle between protestors and quarry firm Tarmac.
The marchers will carry with them a prehistoric stone axe that last travelled the route five millennia ago. The axe was originally brought from Scotland, and was deposited in a ritual location close to Thornborough.
"We believe it's vitally important that the Sacred Vale is recognised for what it is" said Mr Chaplin. "It's not just important to Yorkshire, it's important to Britain. If the destruction of the surroundings of any of these monuments is allowed to continue it would be a national disgrace, not just a Yorkshire one. We hope that by setting up this heritage trail people can be given the chance to explore this little known but supremely important landscape. The more people that get to know about it the more chance there is that it will be saved".
I'm hoping to get along tomorrow. Looks like we might get soaked...
A 5,000 year old ceremony is to be recreated this week as campaigners carry an ancient ceremonial axe through Yorkshire's "Sacred Vale" to Thornborough.
"The area between Catterick and Boroughbridge can claim to be Britain's first great religious and ceremonial centre" said George Chaplin of Heritage Action. "It contains Britain's largest concentration of prehistoric henges, vast circular earthworks that were used as ceremonial meeting places. We are staging a march through this "Sacred Vale" to highlight that the area is an immensely important part of our local and national heritage and that plans to quarry the surrounding archaeology are akin to vandalism."
The trek will take place on Friday and Saturday 22nd and 23rd of October and takes in all of the original ancient ritual landscape - seven mighty henges and a giant stone row, as well as many other monuments that line the route. The route focuses on the mile-long triple henge monument at Thornborough, the location of a bitter battle between protestors and quarry firm Tarmac.
The marchers will carry with them a prehistoric stone axe that last travelled the route five millennia ago. The axe was originally brought from Scotland, and was deposited in a ritual location close to Thornborough.
"We believe it's vitally important that the Sacred Vale is recognised for what it is" said Mr Chaplin. "It's not just important to Yorkshire, it's important to Britain. If the destruction of the surroundings of any of these monuments is allowed to continue it would be a national disgrace, not just a Yorkshire one. We hope that by setting up this heritage trail people can be given the chance to explore this little known but supremely important landscape. The more people that get to know about it the more chance there is that it will be saved".
I'm hoping to get along tomorrow. Looks like we might get soaked...
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- 13,692
Thornborough is in real danger, as you may have read above: thread about it, with online petition, over on announcements, here:
http://www.forteantimes.com/forum/posti ... ly&t=19568
Please sign it, and save a hugely important site from irreperable damage.
http://www.forteantimes.com/forum/posti ... ly&t=19568
Please sign it, and save a hugely important site from irreperable damage
.
- Joined
- Dec 27, 2001
- Messages
- 1,139
I was up there a couple of weeks back with some friends. A colleague reckoned the northern henge may be the best-preserved henge in the country...
I see there's a new book out about the henges: http://www.sacredvale.org/Merchandise/Books.htm
I'll have to get me one of them limited-edition signed copies!
I see there's a new book out about the henges: http://www.sacredvale.org/Merchandise/Books.htm
I'll have to get me one of them limited-edition signed copies!
Powerful new challenge in Thornborough Henges fight
TimeWatch group launches major attack on Tarmac plc
After six months of campaigning under the banner of Heritage Action, the Thornborough Campaign is now to be launched as a separate, independent campaign group, called TimeWatch.
"When we first started campaigning about Thornborough, there was just a handful of us and we were extremely pleased to find a supportive home within Heritage Action" commented George Chaplin. "Now our campaign group has grown so large within Heritage Action that it made sense to launch an independent group in it's own right, with a wider remit and set of priorities.
"The new group will keep its focus on Thornborough's archaeology but will widen its involvement into all other related issues. The impacts of quarrying will be felt far beyond the purely archaeological ones and we intend to ensure the public is fully informed of them."
Nigel Swift, chairman of Heritage Action said: "This reflects well on all who have worked so hard on the Thornborough Campaign. It has grown to be one of the largest of its kind in Britain, reflecting the grave national concern that exists.
"The two organisations will now take up parallel but independent roles. Heritage Action will continue campaigning on threats to all ancient sites and supporting the campaigns of others. TimeWatch will concentrate on raising national awareness of individual sites under threat, starting with Thornborough. We wish them well and look forward to working closely with them in future."
For more information on TimeWatch and the Thornborough campaign, the public are urged to visit the TimeWatch website at www.timewatch.org
TimeWatch group launches major attack on Tarmac plc
After six months of campaigning under the banner of Heritage Action, the Thornborough Campaign is now to be launched as a separate, independent campaign group, called TimeWatch.
"When we first started campaigning about Thornborough, there was just a handful of us and we were extremely pleased to find a supportive home within Heritage Action" commented George Chaplin. "Now our campaign group has grown so large within Heritage Action that it made sense to launch an independent group in it's own right, with a wider remit and set of priorities.
"The new group will keep its focus on Thornborough's archaeology but will widen its involvement into all other related issues. The impacts of quarrying will be felt far beyond the purely archaeological ones and we intend to ensure the public is fully informed of them."
Nigel Swift, chairman of Heritage Action said: "This reflects well on all who have worked so hard on the Thornborough Campaign. It has grown to be one of the largest of its kind in Britain, reflecting the grave national concern that exists.
"The two organisations will now take up parallel but independent roles. Heritage Action will continue campaigning on threats to all ancient sites and supporting the campaigns of others. TimeWatch will concentrate on raising national awareness of individual sites under threat, starting with Thornborough. We wish them well and look forward to working closely with them in future."
For more information on TimeWatch and the Thornborough campaign, the public are urged to visit the TimeWatch website at www.timewatch.org
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- 15
Thornborough Henges News
Members may be interested to know that there is a new consultation happening regarding the Ladybridge planning application close to the Thornborough Henges.
The ritual landscape of Thornborough has been ravaged by quarries for years and English Heritage have confirmed that if granted, the application will destroy archaeology of national importance. This is thought to be a Neolithic settlement that dates to the same period as the henges and therefore holds important clues as to those that used the henges 5,000 years ago.
I'm trying to ensure as meny people as possible are able to object to this application, for those that are interested I have compiled notes and a sample letter.
Please mail me off list.
[email protected]
George
Members may be interested to know that there is a new consultation happening regarding the Ladybridge planning application close to the Thornborough Henges.
The ritual landscape of Thornborough has been ravaged by quarries for years and English Heritage have confirmed that if granted, the application will destroy archaeology of national importance. This is thought to be a Neolithic settlement that dates to the same period as the henges and therefore holds important clues as to those that used the henges 5,000 years ago.
I'm trying to ensure as meny people as possible are able to object to this application, for those that are interested I have compiled notes and a sample letter.
Please mail me off list.
[email protected]
George
Cable viewers and those in the north of England will be interested to know that the Thornborough Henges will be featured on TV this weekend.
The programme is called 'Seven Manmade Wonders of Yorkshire' & is on BBC1 at 6:15pm this Sunday.
Paul Hudson who's the presenter of the programme, - " for me, the most impressive of these 7 Yorkshire wonders was Thornborough Henges, which I found more spectacular than Stonehenge"
The programme is called 'Seven Manmade Wonders of Yorkshire' & is on BBC1 at 6:15pm this Sunday.
Paul Hudson who's the presenter of the programme, - " for me, the most impressive of these 7 Yorkshire wonders was Thornborough Henges, which I found more spectacular than Stonehenge"
Today in the Yorkshire Post
Ancient site looks safe from quarry diggers
English Heritage wants 'Stonehenge of the North' preserved after claiming it is of archaeological importance
Brian Dooks
CONTROVERSIAL plans for sand and gravel quarrying near Thornborough Henges in North Yorkshire look set to founder as new research offers further evidence the ancient monument was aligned with the stars.
Councillors have been urged to turn down an application to quarry 112 acres of land on a site just over half a mile away from the henges at Ladybridge Farm, near Masham, amid claims they are of national importance.
Last year councillors deferred a decision on plans by Tarmac Northern to extract a further 2.2 million tonnes of minerals by extending the existing Nosterfield Quarry after English Heritage claimed that archaeological investigation of the site had been insufficient.
Further archaeological work has taken place which has confirmed that features from the Neolithic or Bronze Age period are confined to an area of slightly higher land in the south west part of the site.
The consultant archaeologists concluded that the findings did not meet "thresholds for national importance" and said they had limited potential and had been heavily compromised by farm ploughing.
But English Heritage takes a different view. It says that the report identified a clear relationship between prehistoric activity on Ladybridge Farm and a wider area it refers to as Thornborough Moor – including the henges, which have been hailed by some as the "Stonehenge of the North".
English Heritage's letter to the county council stresses that the archaeological work, including the latest assessment, has identified a "swathe of nationally-important early prehistoric archaeology and activity" from the Nosterfield site into Ladybridge farm.
Its experts say that the Tarmac application "will have a clear and negative impact on nationally important archaeology". English Heritage wants the remains "preserved in situ".
Tarmac's specialist, Mike Griffiths, a former North Yorkshire County Archaeologist, has argued that they could be recorded prior to extraction of the sand and gravel within an agreed framework.
Informally, English Heritage recognised that the preservation of nationally-important remains through some form of legal agreement might be acceptable, but North Yorkshire County Council's environmental services director Mike Moore said said it had questioned how this might be done given the difference in approach between it and the applicant's archaeological consultants.
Quarrying is opposed by the Council for British Archaeology, the Yorkshire Archaeological Society and two action groups, the Friends of Thornborough Henges and Timewatch. Over 1,000 letters of objection and a petition signed by 9,680 people have been received. Eighty letters of support have been sent in by supporters of the quarry's 15 employees and 40 hauliers.
Mr Moore recommends Tuesday's planning committee refuses permission because the quarry would have an unacceptable impact.
Tarmac's estates manager Bob Nicholson said: "Our consultants and North Yorkshire County Council carried out separate assessments of the Ladybridge artefacts and agreed they were not of national importance."
English Heritage had pulled out of the assessment and failed to give evidence-based reasons backing its assertion that the archaeology was important.
[email protected].
Comment: Page 12.
Neolithic peoples looked to the stars
research examining the origins of Thornborough Henges has confirmed the Neolithic people who built the monument 5,000 years ago were astronomers.
Archaeologists have long known that early man's beliefs were heavily influenced by celestial bodies like the sun, which was the centrepiece of Stonehenge.
But experts believe the Thornborough site was deliberately orientated on the constellation of Orion and engineered to leave people feeling they were at the centre of the cosmos.
Jan Harding, senior lecturer in archaeology at Newcastle University, said there was evidence to believe that the sky was fundamental to the Neolithic way of life.
His colleague Glyn Goodrick, of the Museum of Antiquities at Newcastle University, has created a three-dimensional virtual reality model.
Over this was draped computer-generated images of the sky as it would have appeared in Neolithic times. The result is a virtual world in which it is possible to position yourself to consider the reconstructed view of the henges and the sky.
Dr Harding said the study provided insights into Neolithic religion and what it regarded as important.
"The same objects in the sky are being picked out as important for a period of around 1,500 years."
One of the earliest monuments, a giant elongated enclosure, about half of which has been destroyed by quarrying, was most likely built between 3,500BC and 3,000BC. This appears to have been deliberately orientated towards the midsummer solstice sunrise, to the east, and towards the setting of the three stars which make up the constellation of Orion's Belt, to the west.
This early monument was replaced after 3,000BC by the three circular earth enclosures or henges. All three henges are broken by a pair of entrances, all on a shared axis and aligned on the midwinter solstice sunrise. The entrances frame the rising of the star Sirius and the associated constellation of Orion's Belt.
Dr Harding explains: "Thornborough was a sacred landscape, a place of religious worship, and we should try to interpret these astronomical orientations within that context."
15 February 2006
http://www.yorkshiretoday.co.uk/ViewArt ... ID=1351443
Yorkshire Post opinion - History's Henges.
A site yet to reveal its secrets.
They have been called the Stonehenge of the North. Yet until it was proposed to extend the nearby quarry, comparatively few were aware of the existence, let alone the significance of the Thornborough Henges.
Perhaps this is why Tarmac Northern Ltd believed that its plan to extract sand and gravel from land bordering the henges, near Masham, would be uncontroversial.
However, the firm reckoned without the vociferous opposition of local groups which resulted in a series of surveys, raising the henges' profile and adding considerably to knowledge of this Neolithic monument.
Crucially, the verdict of such respected bodies as English Heritage conflicts dramatically with that of consultants employed by Tarmac. Far from failing to reach "thresholds of national importance", as the consultant archaeologists claim, Thornborough represents "a swathe of nationally important early prehistoric archaeology and activity", according to English Heritage.
With such a wide variance of opinion as to the site's importance, it would be foolhardy in the extreme to conclude that quarrying should be extended. This is why North Yorkshire County Council is wisely recommending rejection of the proposal.
Thornborough may not be as dramatic as Stonehenge. But the latest evidence that it, too, is linked to observation of the cosmos suggests that, like Stonehenge, it has yet to surrender the full secrets of its significance.
Ancient site looks safe from quarry diggers
English Heritage wants 'Stonehenge of the North' preserved after claiming it is of archaeological importance
Brian Dooks
CONTROVERSIAL plans for sand and gravel quarrying near Thornborough Henges in North Yorkshire look set to founder as new research offers further evidence the ancient monument was aligned with the stars.
Councillors have been urged to turn down an application to quarry 112 acres of land on a site just over half a mile away from the henges at Ladybridge Farm, near Masham, amid claims they are of national importance.
Last year councillors deferred a decision on plans by Tarmac Northern to extract a further 2.2 million tonnes of minerals by extending the existing Nosterfield Quarry after English Heritage claimed that archaeological investigation of the site had been insufficient.
Further archaeological work has taken place which has confirmed that features from the Neolithic or Bronze Age period are confined to an area of slightly higher land in the south west part of the site.
The consultant archaeologists concluded that the findings did not meet "thresholds for national importance" and said they had limited potential and had been heavily compromised by farm ploughing.
But English Heritage takes a different view. It says that the report identified a clear relationship between prehistoric activity on Ladybridge Farm and a wider area it refers to as Thornborough Moor – including the henges, which have been hailed by some as the "Stonehenge of the North".
English Heritage's letter to the county council stresses that the archaeological work, including the latest assessment, has identified a "swathe of nationally-important early prehistoric archaeology and activity" from the Nosterfield site into Ladybridge farm.
Its experts say that the Tarmac application "will have a clear and negative impact on nationally important archaeology". English Heritage wants the remains "preserved in situ".
Tarmac's specialist, Mike Griffiths, a former North Yorkshire County Archaeologist, has argued that they could be recorded prior to extraction of the sand and gravel within an agreed framework.
Informally, English Heritage recognised that the preservation of nationally-important remains through some form of legal agreement might be acceptable, but North Yorkshire County Council's environmental services director Mike Moore said said it had questioned how this might be done given the difference in approach between it and the applicant's archaeological consultants.
Quarrying is opposed by the Council for British Archaeology, the Yorkshire Archaeological Society and two action groups, the Friends of Thornborough Henges and Timewatch. Over 1,000 letters of objection and a petition signed by 9,680 people have been received. Eighty letters of support have been sent in by supporters of the quarry's 15 employees and 40 hauliers.
Mr Moore recommends Tuesday's planning committee refuses permission because the quarry would have an unacceptable impact.
Tarmac's estates manager Bob Nicholson said: "Our consultants and North Yorkshire County Council carried out separate assessments of the Ladybridge artefacts and agreed they were not of national importance."
English Heritage had pulled out of the assessment and failed to give evidence-based reasons backing its assertion that the archaeology was important.
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Comment: Page 12.
Neolithic peoples looked to the stars
research examining the origins of Thornborough Henges has confirmed the Neolithic people who built the monument 5,000 years ago were astronomers.
Archaeologists have long known that early man's beliefs were heavily influenced by celestial bodies like the sun, which was the centrepiece of Stonehenge.
But experts believe the Thornborough site was deliberately orientated on the constellation of Orion and engineered to leave people feeling they were at the centre of the cosmos.
Jan Harding, senior lecturer in archaeology at Newcastle University, said there was evidence to believe that the sky was fundamental to the Neolithic way of life.
His colleague Glyn Goodrick, of the Museum of Antiquities at Newcastle University, has created a three-dimensional virtual reality model.
Over this was draped computer-generated images of the sky as it would have appeared in Neolithic times. The result is a virtual world in which it is possible to position yourself to consider the reconstructed view of the henges and the sky.
Dr Harding said the study provided insights into Neolithic religion and what it regarded as important.
"The same objects in the sky are being picked out as important for a period of around 1,500 years."
One of the earliest monuments, a giant elongated enclosure, about half of which has been destroyed by quarrying, was most likely built between 3,500BC and 3,000BC. This appears to have been deliberately orientated towards the midsummer solstice sunrise, to the east, and towards the setting of the three stars which make up the constellation of Orion's Belt, to the west.
This early monument was replaced after 3,000BC by the three circular earth enclosures or henges. All three henges are broken by a pair of entrances, all on a shared axis and aligned on the midwinter solstice sunrise. The entrances frame the rising of the star Sirius and the associated constellation of Orion's Belt.
Dr Harding explains: "Thornborough was a sacred landscape, a place of religious worship, and we should try to interpret these astronomical orientations within that context."
15 February 2006
http://www.yorkshiretoday.co.uk/ViewArt ... ID=1351443
Yorkshire Post opinion - History's Henges.
A site yet to reveal its secrets.
They have been called the Stonehenge of the North. Yet until it was proposed to extend the nearby quarry, comparatively few were aware of the existence, let alone the significance of the Thornborough Henges.
Perhaps this is why Tarmac Northern Ltd believed that its plan to extract sand and gravel from land bordering the henges, near Masham, would be uncontroversial.
However, the firm reckoned without the vociferous opposition of local groups which resulted in a series of surveys, raising the henges' profile and adding considerably to knowledge of this Neolithic monument.
Crucially, the verdict of such respected bodies as English Heritage conflicts dramatically with that of consultants employed by Tarmac. Far from failing to reach "thresholds of national importance", as the consultant archaeologists claim, Thornborough represents "a swathe of nationally important early prehistoric archaeology and activity", according to English Heritage.
With such a wide variance of opinion as to the site's importance, it would be foolhardy in the extreme to conclude that quarrying should be extended. This is why North Yorkshire County Council is wisely recommending rejection of the proposal.
Thornborough may not be as dramatic as Stonehenge. But the latest evidence that it, too, is linked to observation of the cosmos suggests that, like Stonehenge, it has yet to surrender the full secrets of its significance.
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Now protect henges for all time - call
HENGES campaigners are calling for more protection to ge given to the ancient site at Thornborough, north of Ripon, after quarry giant Tarmac announced it would challenge a decision blocking its expansion plans.
At a meeting in Masham on Tuesday, North Yorkshire County Council’s planning committee voted 6 - 3 to reject Tarmac’s controversial proposal to quarry 112 acres at Ladybridge Farm, close to the 5,000 year old henges.
The committee ruled against the application for an extension of the existing Nosterfield Quarry, saying it went against the county’s mineral local plan regarding location, scale and the adverse impact it would have on “nationally important archaeological remains”.
But before anti-quarry campaigners had time to celebrate their victory, Tarmac announced it would be appealing against the decision.
The firm’s estates manager, Bob Nicholson, said after the meeting: “We are deeply disappointed at this decision, which threatens the livelihoods of more than 50 people and has serious implications in respect of the supply of sand and gravel to the construction industry.
“We will appeal against this decision because we believe that the advice given by English Heritage is based on speculation and supposition about the status of archaeology at Ladybridge and their assertion of national importance is not supported by factual evidence.”
In response to the continued threat of quarrying near the henges, heritage action group TimeWatch has called for the recently proposed Thornborough Henges conservation plan to be radically redrafted to reflect the importance of the area.
Spokesman George Chaplin said: “The threat of quarrying has not been removed by the planning refusal but it has given time to take stock and for everyone to agree upon the best future for the whole area.”
The Timewatch proposals are for:
l a much wider “no quarry zone” extending at least a mile radius from the central monuments
l the preservation of all archaeology within the zone to be the top priority
Mr Chaplin said: “Tarmac have not given up in their ambition to extend the existing quarry.
They intend to appeal against the refusal and the danger remains very real for the whole of the remaining surroundings.
“Tarmac’s reaction to Tuesday’s defeat and its insistence that English Heritage is wrong, should be seen as a warning to us all.”
Extensive archaeological excavations at Ladybridge led English Heritage to oppose any further quarrying in the area because because it was a site of national importance.
But Mr Nicholson insisted: “Our proposal for Ladybridge, which actually moves quarrying further away from the henges than our current operation, poses absolutely no threat to the ancient monument, which is protected by law.
“We maintain that our application is both justified and reasonable and we will mount a robust case for its approval at appeal, when we hope that factual evidence will prevail over mythical invention.”
Tarmac’s application had been hugely controversial, with anti-quarry campaigners winning international support to safeguard the setting of an ancient monument that has been named ‘The Stonehenge of the North’.
County Coun John Fletcher, who chaired Tuesday’s planning meeting, said: “This was a hard decision to reach, but the committee gave full consideration to the well articulated arguments from both sides before coming to their conclusion.”
Yorkshire Euro-MP, Edward McMillan-Scott, who visited Thornborough last year, said he was delighted with the council’s refusal of planning permission.
"This is the right decision,” he said “The henges are an enormously important site of international significance. The site deserves a visitor centre and the attention which Stonehenge receives. I am delighted and relieved and I pay tribute to the local campaigners for the henges who are a model action group."
http://www.ripontoday.co.uk/ViewArticle ... ID=1365226
HENGES campaigners are calling for more protection to ge given to the ancient site at Thornborough, north of Ripon, after quarry giant Tarmac announced it would challenge a decision blocking its expansion plans.
At a meeting in Masham on Tuesday, North Yorkshire County Council’s planning committee voted 6 - 3 to reject Tarmac’s controversial proposal to quarry 112 acres at Ladybridge Farm, close to the 5,000 year old henges.
The committee ruled against the application for an extension of the existing Nosterfield Quarry, saying it went against the county’s mineral local plan regarding location, scale and the adverse impact it would have on “nationally important archaeological remains”.
But before anti-quarry campaigners had time to celebrate their victory, Tarmac announced it would be appealing against the decision.
The firm’s estates manager, Bob Nicholson, said after the meeting: “We are deeply disappointed at this decision, which threatens the livelihoods of more than 50 people and has serious implications in respect of the supply of sand and gravel to the construction industry.
“We will appeal against this decision because we believe that the advice given by English Heritage is based on speculation and supposition about the status of archaeology at Ladybridge and their assertion of national importance is not supported by factual evidence.”
In response to the continued threat of quarrying near the henges, heritage action group TimeWatch has called for the recently proposed Thornborough Henges conservation plan to be radically redrafted to reflect the importance of the area.
Spokesman George Chaplin said: “The threat of quarrying has not been removed by the planning refusal but it has given time to take stock and for everyone to agree upon the best future for the whole area.”
The Timewatch proposals are for:
l a much wider “no quarry zone” extending at least a mile radius from the central monuments
l the preservation of all archaeology within the zone to be the top priority
Mr Chaplin said: “Tarmac have not given up in their ambition to extend the existing quarry.
They intend to appeal against the refusal and the danger remains very real for the whole of the remaining surroundings.
“Tarmac’s reaction to Tuesday’s defeat and its insistence that English Heritage is wrong, should be seen as a warning to us all.”
Extensive archaeological excavations at Ladybridge led English Heritage to oppose any further quarrying in the area because because it was a site of national importance.
But Mr Nicholson insisted: “Our proposal for Ladybridge, which actually moves quarrying further away from the henges than our current operation, poses absolutely no threat to the ancient monument, which is protected by law.
“We maintain that our application is both justified and reasonable and we will mount a robust case for its approval at appeal, when we hope that factual evidence will prevail over mythical invention.”
Tarmac’s application had been hugely controversial, with anti-quarry campaigners winning international support to safeguard the setting of an ancient monument that has been named ‘The Stonehenge of the North’.
County Coun John Fletcher, who chaired Tuesday’s planning meeting, said: “This was a hard decision to reach, but the committee gave full consideration to the well articulated arguments from both sides before coming to their conclusion.”
Yorkshire Euro-MP, Edward McMillan-Scott, who visited Thornborough last year, said he was delighted with the council’s refusal of planning permission.
"This is the right decision,” he said “The henges are an enormously important site of international significance. The site deserves a visitor centre and the attention which Stonehenge receives. I am delighted and relieved and I pay tribute to the local campaigners for the henges who are a model action group."
http://www.ripontoday.co.uk/ViewArticle ... ID=1365226
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