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Monday 19 September 2011

Pont Saeson rhyolite at Stonehenge?

The Scarlet Pimpernel (or whatever he currently calls himself) asked if I would put up a post with the pic of stone 32e at Stonehenge alongside a pic of the "bluestone" found in the pit at Craig Rhosyfelin.
Happy to oblige.  Note that the recently uncovered stone has a rather flaky structure, revealing flattish faces when the flakes peel off.  In the Atkinson picture from Stonehenge the stump on the left is vertical, and the stone is smaller, but the structure does look rather similar.  We don't know whether the rock types are identical, because as far as we know the Stonehenge stump has never been sampled in recent times, so at the moment all is speculation.  All we know is that stone 32e is made of rhyolite.  Many rhyolites have this sort of flaky structure, as I know from living in this area.

Not that I mind at all where it's come from.  If the geologists have found the source of stone 32e at Craig Rhosyfelin, then that's great.

5 comments:

Tony H said...

Is the fellow on the left, leaning against the Sarcen, Woody Allen? One of his earliest creations?

BRIAN JOHN said...

Who knows? I have always thought that the one in the deep hole is Atkinson.

Anonymous said...

Ah an (eratic tail (sic) of two sites. I shall put my head on the block here and say
Really it was the small block in your photo 2 of the excavation that I though seemed like SH32e rather than the very big one.
As you say the fact that the stones have the same origin means just that.
No I do not think that there is any chip off that very old block (SH32e)
Róisín Dubh.

BRIAN JOHN said...

The one on the left (stump -- all that is left of a standing stone) is 32e -- the one that Atkinson is examining is 32d. Looks like dolerite to me -- but I can't remember its precise identification.

Anonymous said...

Sorry
The Atkinson photo is fine.
Your second photo of Locality 8 Rhos-y-felin has a small block on its side in the corner of the trench that is what I think looks like SH32e.
(I can even see the join where 32e was knocked off if I squint!!!Now that is very naughty, sorry)
Roisin dubh