Independent researcher Simon Banton has published a clear and accessible blog post explaining how he used the Moon as a proxy for the ancient Sun to test and visualise Stonehenge’s secondary solstice axis.
Photo of the lunar proxy of the Midwinter Solstitial Sunrise over the Altar Stone - photo - Simon Banton
The Problem
The Earth’s axial tilt (obliquity) was slightly greater (~24°) when Stonehenge’s sarsens were erected around 2500 BC. This means the Sun no longer rises and sets at exactly the same horizon positions the Neolithic builders saw. Direct observation of the ancient winter solstice sunrise is impossible today.
The Clever Lunar Solution
During a major lunar standstill (which we’re in now), the Moon reaches more extreme positions on the horizon than the modern Sun. Banton timed his observations for July 2024/2025 so the Moon rose very close to where the winter solstice Sun would have appeared 4,500 years ago.
He captured the event from a position aligned with the proposed sightline — looking through the notch in Stone 58 and the edge of Stone 53 toward Coneybury Hill. The results are striking: the Moon acted as an excellent stand-in, confirming the alignment works.
Why This Matters
- The sightline is tightly framed and runs parallel to and directly above the long axis of the Altar Stone.
- It forms an ~80° angle with the primary solstice axis (summer sunrise to winter sunset) — exactly as expected for the solstice extremes at Stonehenge’s latitude in 2500 BC.
- This supports the earlier proposal by Gordon & Phyllis Freeman and reinforces the idea that the monument was deliberately designed around two intersecting solstice axes from the start.
You can read Simon’s blog post here: Using the Moon as a Proxy for the Ancient Sun
(Note: Simon has also written a more detailed peer-reviewed version which is currently behind a paywall, https://doi.org/10.1558/jsa.33686 )
No comments:
Post a Comment
Comments welcome on fresh posts - you just need a Google account to do so.