Sunday, November 30, 2003

Cronaca


Cronaca, by David Nishimura, an art historian by training, has the motto "Past Imperfect, Present Subjunctive, Future Conditional" and is a blog which describes itself as follows:

"Cronaca is a compilation of news concerning art, archeology, history, and whatever else catches the chronicler's eye, with the odd bit of opinion and commentary thrown in. Since history does not seem to have come to an end, other posts reflect a historian's-eye view of current events."

Nishimura is well known as a dealer and collector of old writing instruments.

Sunday, November 09, 2003

Orkney was a large cohesive settlement


In an article of November 3. 2003 by Stephen Stewart in the The Herald entitled "Was Orkney the ceremonial capital of ancient Britain?, one thankfully sees some progress in the archaeologists beginning - finally - to see ancient megalithic locations to be cohesive systematic wholes put up by intelligent beings rather than isolated bunches of stones put up by savages.

On one score, however, the archaeological "community" still has not learned - with the typical archaeologist's fetishism for ceremonies and rituals. I think your average archaeologist should finally come to the realization that ancient man was NOT like your average archaeologist - he was not as ritually or ceremonially oriented, and was surely a better astronomer, and, if ancient men did have ceremonies and rituals, they were those of movable feasts, as determined by the heavenly spheres - as today.

At least, this possibility should be STRONGLY considered.