apothecary Posted May 15, 2006 http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200605/s1637840.htm Archaeologists have discovered a pre-colonial astrological observatory possibly 2,000 years old in the Amazon basin near French Guiana, a report has said. "Only a society with a complex culture could have built such a monument," archaeologist Mariana Petry Cabral, of the Amapa Institute of Scientific and Technological Research (IEPA), told O Globo newspaper. The observatory was built of 127 blocks of granite each three metres high and regularly placed in circles in an open field, she said. Ms Cabral said the site resembles a temple which could have been used as an observatory, because the blocks are positioned to mark the winter solstice. In December, the path of the sun allows rays to pass through a hole in one of the blocks, possibly to calculate agricultural activity and religious rituals. Its exact age has been difficult to determine, but based on ceramic fragments found nearby, archaeologists estimate it between 500 and 2,000 years old. The discovery is in Calcoene, 390 kilometres from Macapa, the capital of Amapa state, near Brazil's border with French Guyana. Archaeologists said the find holds mysteries similar to Stonehenge, in Salisbury, England, another monument of huge stones, whose purpose is also unclear. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tripitaka Posted May 15, 2006 Saw the report on the ABC news and the best that they could come up with was that it was constructed for seasonal cropping! Come on ABC, how many tons of stone and precise mathematical alignment in order to work out when to plant some potatoes?? Great post Sina, thanks for that link! I wonder if it aligns with other such monumants?? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
alkatrope Posted May 15, 2006 Interesting. Would love to see more photos. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
PD. Posted May 15, 2006 Its a shame that all our ancient knowledge has been lost or destroyed. There is so much evidence that ancient civilisations were complex and intelligent societies that had had a secret knowledge of the world\universe around them. If we today were as smart as the ancient people, i doubt we would have let ourselves go down the path we have chosen. Maybe when we realise we are the dominant species here to protect all and not to plunder all, we as humans will see the errors of our ways and may even move forward as a civilisation. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
SaBReT00tH Posted May 15, 2006 that's awesome. I some saw other cool monuments in Ireland too which predate the pyramids and stonehenge. Newgrange sits on the top of an elongated ridge within a large bend in the Boyne River about five miles west of the town of Drogheda. This area has great eminence thoughout Irish history - legend tells us the foundations of Christianity were laid here. This also has to do with the winter solstice. It's amazing how many monoments are indeed aligned with the solstice. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Legba Posted May 15, 2006 (edited) Saw the report on the ABC news and the best that they could come up with was that it was constructed for seasonal cropping! perhaps they took their seasonal cropping more seriously... Celebrating the Seasons SamhainAlso called: Halloween, All Hallows Eve, All Saints & All Souls, Day of the Dead dates: October 31, early November colors: black, orange, indigo tools: votive candles, magic mirror, cauldron, pumpkins, divination tools energy: death & transformation; Wiccan new year goddesses: Crone, Hecate gods: Horned Hunter, Cernnunos, Anubis rituals: honoring ancestors, releasing old, foreseeing future, understanding death and rebirth customs: jack o'lanterns, spirit plate, ancestor altar, divination, costumes Winter Solstice Also called: Yule, Jul, Saturnalia, Christmas, solar/secular New Year dates: around December 21 colors: red, green, white tools: mistletoe, evergreen wreath, lights, gifts, holly, Yule log, Yule tree energy: regeneration & renewal goddesses: Great Mother, Isis, Mary, Tonazin, Lucina, Bona Dea gods: Sun Child, Horus, Jesus, Mithras, Santa/Odin, Saturn, Holly King rituals: personal renewal, world peace, honoring family & friends customs: wreaths, lights, gift-giving, singing, feasting, resolutions Imbolc Also called: Candlemas, Oimelc, Brigid's Day; merged with Lupercalia/Valentines Day dates: February 2, early February colors: white, red tools: candles, seeds, Brigid wheel, milk energy: conception, initiation, inspiration goddesses: Brigid, Maiden gods: Groundhog, other creatures emerging from hibernation; young Sun rituals: creative inspiration, purification, initiation, candle work, house & temple blessings customs: lighting candles, seeking omens of Spring, cleaning house, welcoming Brigid Spring Equinox Also called: Ostara, St. Patrick's Day, Easter dates: around March 21 colors: green, yellow tools: eggs, basket, green clothes energy: birthing, sprouting, greening goddesses: Ostara, Kore, Maiden gods: Hare, Green Man rituals: breakthrough, new growth, new projects, seed blessings customs: wearing green, egg games, new clothes, egg baskets Beltane Also called: May Eve, May Day, Walspurgis Night dates: April 30, early May colors: rainbow spectrum, blue, green, pastels, all colors tools: Maypole & ribbons, flower crowns, fires, bowers, fields energy: youthful play, exhuberance, sensuality, pleasure goddesses: May Queen, Flora gods: May King, Jack in the Green rituals: love, romance, fertility, crop blessings, creativity endeavors customs: dancing Maypole, jumping fire, mating, flower baskets Summer Solstice Also called: Midsummer, Litha, St. John's Day dates: around June 21 colors: yellow, gold, rainbow colors tools: bonfires, Sun wheel, Earth circles of stone energy: partnership goddesses: Mother Earth, Mother Nature gods: Father Sun/Sky, Oak King rituals: community, career, relationships, Nature Spirit communion, planetary wellness customs: bonfires, processions, all night vigil, singing, feasting, celebrating with others Lammas Also called: Lughnassad dates: August 2, early August colors: orange, yellow, brown, green tools: sacred loaf of bread, harvested herbs, bonfires energy: fruitfulness, reaping prosperity goddesses: Demeter, Ceres, Corn Mother gods: Grain God, Lugh, John Barleycorn rituals: prosperity, generosity, continued success customs: offering of first fruits/grains, games, country fairs Fall Equinox Also called: Mabon, Michaelmas dates: around September 21 colors: orange, red, brown, purple, blue tools: cornucopia, corn, harvested crops energy: appreciation & harvest goddesses: Bona Dea, Land Mother gods: Mabon, Sky Father rituals: thanksgiving, harvest, introspection customs: offerings to land, preparing for cold weather, bringing in harvest ...how many tons of stone and precise mathematical alignment in order to work out when to plant some potatoes?? there was a handheld version... The Sky Disc of Nebra even New Zealand claim to have some "weather stones"... Link Edited May 15, 2006 by Bacchant Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
nabraxas Posted May 16, 2006 better stuff on the Brazil megaliths, with more realistic dates & more pictures Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
botanika Posted May 25, 2006 (edited) Its a shame that all our ancient knowledge has been lost or destroyed. There is so much evidence that ancient civilisations were complex and intelligent societies that had had a secret knowledge of the world\universe around them. If we today were as smart as the ancient people, i doubt we would have let ourselves go down the path we have chosen.Maybe when we realise we are the dominant species here to protect all and not to plunder all, we as humans will see the errors of our ways and may even move forward as a civilisation. Dont mean this in any offence Phleb, just giving an alternative viewpoint...I think its a romantic idea to believe ancient people were smarter and had some sort of secret knowledge that surpasses what we have today. We have a whole lot of knowledge and experience they didn't have. Modern society is incredibly complex and advanced with an amazing mastery of astronomy and the sciences. The ancient civilisations are on exactly the same path we are on... in sense they helped choose the path we are currently following, we're just further down the timeline with a greater population dynamic. Ancient South American civilisations probably suffered the same problems any large organised, populated society faces. Im quite convinced south american cultures also had their fair share of plundering, poor distribution of wealth, environmental miss management and dominance like anywhere else. Just like we're doing now on a global scale, the Mayans grew their society to a large enough size where they became vulnerable to environmental collapse (from droughts). We're all the same legacy. We tend to admire ancient cultures for their mastery of stone and metal because that's all they had to concentrate on and their processes of construction have often been lost in time making them quite intriguing and mysterious. It aint easy to build stone henge with primitive construction - well it aint easy to get a man on the moon either. Im sure some ancient people would be blown away by what we have today if they could be pulled forward in time. Even if humans completely infrastructurized the world with little natural habitat left, would it be going down a bad destructive path or would it be a path seeded unintentionally by our ancient past that's very difficult to change and one that is a common evolutionary path encountered elsewhere in the universe by intelligent beings. Edited May 25, 2006 by botanika Share this post Link to post Share on other sites