Tag Archives for trilithons

Stonehenge in the Water, Cumbria

water-stonehenge

photo by skittzitilby, with permission

We’ve said before that there are many Stonehenges made of small stones out there, and we just want to post a few of the best. We find this one charming, not only for its delicate form and the photo’s deep colours. It  has a story.

Skittzitilby says, “it was made for me by my fella when he came up from the Bristol area after living 30+years of his life down there—-it was his romantic present to me showing me he loves it so much up here in Cumbria with me that he made me my own.” It looks like Skittzitilby has a pretty nice set of trilithons!

We can’t help but think this is a great precedent–showing one’s love by building a Stonehenge replica for the beloved. Maybe it will catch on! A man could try to charm a woman (or vice versa, or men charm men or women charm women–we are an equal opportunity blog!) by building an especially elaborate or meticulously correct model, depending on the other’s preferences. “What kind of Stonehenge did he (or she) build you?” people would ask one another. Or couples could build them together making distinctive replicas that would demonstrate by the ways they were unique, the personality of the couple!

Many possibilities! Score for the Stonehenge of Love, 6½ druids. More love and more replicas, people. But if it has to be just one, then, okay: make more love!

Former Fountain Henge, Warwick Uni, England

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photo by Nick Howes, aka Jimmy Dustpan, with permission

The photographer’s explanation is that it was a fountain originally, “But since the water stopped it became just been a rather sad pile of rocks. As it’s a University campus it was only a matter of time before some students decided to repurpose it as a mini Stonehenge.” Interestingly put: ” . . . it was only a matter of time“? How many people would see it that way, besides us?

Look at it. The Stonehenge someone builds shows what Stonehenge is to him, and who he is. Sam Hill created a monument to soldiers. The astronomer builds an observatory. The clockmaker builds a timepiece. The artist makes a sculpture. The engineer grapples with method. The Stonehenge-obsessed creates a meticulous model. The gardener makes a folly. The pagan crafts a ritual space. The playful person creates a whimsy. Spinal Tap fans make little trilithons. Ahem. And so on.

That’s the reason for this blog. By looking at these replicas, we get a glimpse of what Stonehenge looks like to, or what it represents to, their creators. The answer to the question, “what is it about Stonehenge that has such a hold on people?” begins to look like “many things!” As with a Rorschach inkblot test, what we see in Stonehenge arises from who we are, and like a lake it draws our attention with its reflective quality.

Score: 5 druids. More proof that Stonehenge is a creature that reproduces by infecting minds!

Stonehedge Gardens, Tamaqua, Pennsylvania

stonehedge

photos from the Stonehedge Gardens website

This one isn’t really hengy enough. Still, its name is worth discussing and outdoor stone replicas are getting harder for us to find. Our searches meet with diminishing returns, although, truth to tell, we did find two today that we hope to post in the future!

stonehedge21The site says: “The mission of Stonehedge Gardens is to provide a healing, sacred, inclusive environment for the cultivation of personal and community transformation and wellness through the gardens and nature, the arts and holistic education.” The gardens are said to be beautiful, but why Stonehedge? Perhaps to meld the spiritual implications of Stonehenge with the garden word hedge. We do think they spelled it that way on purpose, unlike some. (See the 3rd comment below for the real explanation.)

Stonehedge is the most common misspelling of Stonehenge, surpassing Stongehenge and Stonhenge. And there are others: Stongehedge, Stonhedge and the obvious Stone Henge. The internet has created an age when  researchers must find all possible misspellings of their key words.

The benches here are meant to gently suggest a Stonehenge theme, not form a Stonehenge replica. It wouldn’t be fair to score them. We just wanted to discuss their name. Shame on us! Out of guilt, we’ll throw a handful of druids their way. Score: 5 druids. All this reminds us of a cartoon: [link]. Gardening time is upon us, folks–time to build your henges!

Blockhenge Relocated

blockhenge

photo by deadeyebart a.k.a Brett

Now we have proof that henges, once assembled, turn into living things! This blockhenge, shown near the bottom of our Virtual Hengefest page, moved itself to a new location, and we know this due to its documentation by Brett Fernau, aka the Mad Henger, aka deadeyebart. We know he wouldn’t kid about something this serious!

blockhenge2The Flickr caption says, “Under mysterious circumstances, Blockhenge has been relocated and recreated. Its sudden reappearance has confused scientists who have stated that further study is needed. Personally, I think it’s evidence of alien activity.” It is soothing to know that scientists are working to solve the mystery, but we’ve been posting henges long enough to be convinced that aliens are not necessary as an explanation of peculiar activity on this planet! We carbon-based lifeforms do very well on our own, thank you.

This is a simple replica with no bluestones, altar stone, heel stone, or ditch and bank (although the square enclosure makes a gesture toward that element). It is nicely done, however, and appears to include two inner trilithons. Score: 6 druids.  We like the view off the platform in the first picture. Maybe the henge moved there in order to take it all in!

Stonehenge at the Office Plaza, Renton, Washington State

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photo by Denise Zullig, with permission

In the center of the Southgate Office Plaza, a few blocks from the WOTC (Wizards of the Coast) headquarters, in Renton, Washington, stands this odd homage to Stonehenge, without even a plaque for explanation. We have been on the track of this sculpture/monument for months and only through the Flickr photostream of Rick Umali were we able to track it down.

renton-rick-umali[photo at left by Rick Umali] We got in touch with City of Renton Communications Director  Preeti Shridhar, who through Jennifer Davis Hayes was able to send us  great photos by Denise Zullig. It takes a village to do a Clonehenge post! Our thanks to all of you.

renton-3What else do we know? Almost nothing. It’s an odd one, an arc of trilithons made up of what appear to be cement blocks. Judging by the architecture of the building (nicknamed the Ziplock building–well, look at it!) in the lower photo, also by Zullig, we would guess that it’s been there a few decades. But who built it, how and why, are unknown to us. It’s Washington State, we’re tempted to say, so of course there’s a Stonehenge!

Score: 5 druids. It’s not at all accurate, but what a pleasant surpise to find something like this in a corporate setting! If we find out more, we’ll post it. In the meanime, props to the people of The Stonehenge State. Way to honour the ancients!

You can see it on Google Street View here.

Splash Stonehenge Replica, Monroe, Washington

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photo from the website of Falling Water Designs

Why couldn’t Stonehenge be a fountain? As a matter of fact, English Heritage, it is not too late! Make that tunnel you’d been planning a little smaller, put pipes in it, and have a water feature expert come in and design the water flow . . .

Well, maybe not, but to make up for it, Rick Perry, owner of Falling Water Designs in Monroe, Washington (yes, Washington! We’ll get back to that), outside Seattle, created this remarkable partial-Stonehenge-replica water feature of what looks like real stone to us. We know that Rick or someone he works with has a mild case of megalithia* because of other photos on the website.

This seems to be made of two trilithons at an angle to one another, a configuration we haven’t seen before. Score: 5½ druids. Yes, it is ridiculous, but that element of humour might help the thing remain a pleasure over time. Hmm . . . do you think, if we slow the water down, we could grow mosses?

Anyway, it is Washington State again. Despite Michigan’s desperate attempts at holding its title, like a woodhenge we’ve heard of but can’t seem to find and an odd snowmobile “hinge” that doesn’t quite make the henginess cut, it looks like Washington State has usurped the coveted title of The Stonehenge State. And we still have a Washington replica we have yet to show you! What is going on up there??

* a condition, rarely fatal unless combined with clumsiness, which creates a compulsion to erect megaliths

Dominohenge: Not to Be Toppled

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photos and henge by errordactyl and brother, with permission

As we’ve said before, anything vaguely rectangular and three-dimensional eventually becomes the material for a henge, and dominoes are no exception. Here’s a link to another one [link] with added amusing comments.

We like the one above because someone actually looked at Stonehenge (see photo below) and noticed the trilithons grouped in the center and that many of the lintels in the sarsen circle are down. The use of two dominoes for each upright was thoughtful, too.

domino-2We can’t quite make out what the little coloured figures are but we’re going to take them as bluestones. If you want, the glass can be a UFO. Why not?

Score: 6½ druids. We’re glad that errordactyl thinks  Stonehenge is f***ing awesome. But we’re not sure we agree with the commenter on the other dominohenge who implies that Stonehenge would look better if it had dalmation-type spots. Don’t give the vandals any new ideas. And leave the toppling to the pros!

Stonehenge, the board game?

stonehengeboardpreview

promotional photos from Titanic Games

Here’s a fun angle on the Stonehenge reproduction: a board game in which plastic trilithons are pieces. (Is that not a druid we spy below?)

stonehenge-board-game

Actually, it’s five games or more. The game company gave the board and pieces to five game designers and each wrote a game, then all sets of rules were included in the game box. Since then, not only was an expansion with more games and pieces released, but players have designed their own games and submitted them to the Titanic site (here) for others to try. They even have related puzzles online, like this one.

Well, we admit that it looks like fun. Any excuse to set up a Stonehenge replica in the living room when friends come over has a certain appeal for us. If anyone out there has this, please let us know how you like it.

The replica doesn’t appear to be very accurate, but we like the idea, the appealing game board, and the fact that there are many ways to play just as there are many ideas about how and why Stonehenge was invented. Score: 6½ druids, and it appears they can add one of their own. Oh, those druids, they must have a great PR group!

African Stonehenge

african-stonehange

photo from advertisement

We’ve posted Stonehenge replicas from Europe, North America, Asia,  and Oz so far. We’ve had New Zealand, too, but if we’re checking off continents only three are left and we would like to cover them all. Fortunately for us, not far outside of Johannesburg, South Africa, in Parys, Gauteng Province, there is a lodge and conference center called–you guessed it–Stonehenge, and, as the ad says, “As Guests enter Stonehenge, they are greeted by large replication of the celebrated Stonehenge Monument and throughout the complex natural, strategically placed granite plinths reinforce the African Ambience.”

OMG, score! The picture above is the only one we could find, so we don’t know if the ‘replication’ consists of more than two trilithons, but that’s enough for us to count it. They’re actually nice big square trilithons that put us in mind of the Montana Stonehenge, except for that lovely pinkish cast. (We’re waiting for photo permissions, but will get you Montana’s one of these days so you can compare.)

It’s impossible to score this accurately since we don’t know how much more of it there is, but, hey, we’ve never scored accurately before,  so why start now? Score: 6 druids, plus an extra  ∏ for being in Africa! Anyone who can direct us to replicas in Antarctica or South America gets . . . a handwritten note and our eternal gratitude, or something cooler if we can think of it. Get someone on the space station to make a henge and get us the picture and, Wow! We’ll be like BFFs forever! Srsly!!!

Doorhenge: temporary installation

A video for this post: some people from the collaborative production game SFZero came together to create a circle of door trilithons in a public but undisclosed location. Later videos show them dancing a victory dance as a policeman approaches, and then discussing the installation with the sceptical but tolerant copper.

The henge turns out pretty well, and its guerilla art quality  gains it points from me. 7½ druids for this daring performance henge!