- Joined
- Jul 31, 2001
- Messages
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Originally posted by Gyrtrash
Gerrim!:hmph:
Absolutely, damn vandals, by the way, why the name change? nice avatar.
Originally posted by Gyrtrash
Gerrim!:hmph:
Hi-tech vet to clean stone circle
by Malcolm Prior
BBC News Online, Oxfordshire
Druids tried to spiritually clean them but now it is a vet's turn to see if he can physically restore them to health.
The ancient Rollright Stones on the Oxfordshire/Warwickshire border have been off-colour ever since vandals daubed them in bright yellow paint.
Hi-tech ultrasound equipment used by vets to clean plaque from animals' teeth is now to be used in an attempt to restore the stones.
It is hoped the device will leave rare lichen on the stones untouched.
Damage was caused to about 70 stones at the Neolithic circle when it was vandalised on 31 March.
Druids held their own cleansing ritual at the site, near Chipping Norton, soon after the attack, and have since held a number of ceremonies aimed at helping the police find the culprits.
Meanwhile, conservationists have been struggling to find a way of restoring the stones without damaging the important examples of lichen said to date back to 1100 AD.
Various chemicals have been tested but ruled out for fear of damaging the lichen.
Site manager Dohn Prout has himself tried to clean up a small area of stone using tweezers and dental picks - a task that took about three hours.
But a trip to the dentist made by one of the site trustees' wives proved a revelation.
"She suggested we try ultrasound as they do when removing plaque.
"Thinking sideways, it was decided that vets worked on smaller teeth and areas of plaque and their equipment was more portable," said Mr Prout.
On Wednesday, vet Peter Aylmer, from the Chipping Norton Veterinary Hospital, will test out his ultrasound descaling equipment on the circle, which could date back to as early as 2500 BC.
Mr Aylmer told BBC News Online: "It is used for descaling dogs' and cats' teeth, to get the plaque off.
"The idea is that the ultrasound probe does not damage the fabric - you get the plaque off without damaging the enamel.
"We are hopeful we can get the paint off the stone without damaging what's underneath."
Mr Prout said: "It looks like it might be hopeful because when the manufacturers get the equipment back for repair they test it on dried paint on a tin can.
"So we know it works on paint but we do not know the effect it will have on the stones."
Mr Prout said he hoped English Heritage, which is managing the restoration, would purchase a descaler if the tests proved successful.
Originally posted by SilburyMoon
Please show your appreciation there for what he's been doing.
Thank you.
*gets off soapbox*
Pete Younger said:Might not be a good idea, the sad git obviously gets off on the anger of others.
FTMB can't condone suggestions that people go and post messages and take other actions on other sites.
Last Update: Friday, October 1, 2004. 12:19pm (AEST)
Rock-lifter agrees to return megalith
A Swiss gardening enthusiast who took a two-and-half tonne stone from a forest to decorate his garden has pledged to put it back, after local authorities warned he had stolen a listed prehistoric relic.
Authorities were mystified when the weighty megalith vanished from a wood near the village of Montagny-pres-Yverdon in early September, said Mayor Linus Auer.
A few hours after they published an appeal for witnesses in local newspapers, the rock-lifter, who had used a tractor to shift the would-be centrepiece of his rock garden, came forward voluntarily.
He explained that he "wanted something pretty in his garden" but did not realise the rock was a prehistoric stone, the mayor said.
The megalith is a protected object and has holes carved by hand during the Neolithic period, or the Bronze Age.
The gardener has pledged to put the megalith back in place, in return for an offer from the village not to press charges.
The village is taking steps to avoid a similar misunderstanding in the future.
Mr Auer says: "We're going to put an explanatory sign to point out that it's a megalith."
A makeshift bird hide has been built on the site of a Neolithic burial cairn, damaging the 3,000-year-old archaeological site.
Made from the canopy for a pick-up truck and a wooden pallet, it was constructed on one of three ancient cairns at Carn Glas, near Inverness.
Police Scotland said it was aware of the structure at Essich.
Historic Environment Scotland (HES) said it was taking enforcement action to have the hide removed.
Turf and stones were moved at the cairn, one of three at the site which are of a design usually found further north in the Highlands and also in Orkney.
The hide, which has toppled over, had been fixed in place by heavy metal pins.
Eighteen years ago, a Belgian tourist took a stone from Clava Cairns as a souvenir before returning it after complaining it had cursed his family.
Surprised staff at Inverness Tourist Centre received a parcel containing the stone and a letter which urged them to return it to its rightful place at the cairns.
The man said that since taking the stone, his daughter had broken her leg, his wife had become very ill, and he had lost his job and broken his arm.
A tourist official returned the "cursed stone" to Clava Cairns.