I've been watching a lecture given by Mike Pitts to Gresham College on -- what else? -- Stonehenge. Much of the lecture was based on the text of "How to build Stonehenge". It was all very calm and academic, with lots of interesting illustrations, but I found it immensely frustrating because of the manner in which Mike examined in minute detail certain aspects of the Stonehenge story (especially how it was constructed) but accepted without question certain other aspects. What was most surprising was his unquestioning acceptance of three things:
that the bluestones were all from Pembrokeshire
that the stones were transported by human beings
that the stones were physically quarried from selected locations.
He accepted rather too easily that the sarsens were all taken from West Woods, and that the bluestones had been taken from Neolithic quarries at Rhosyfelin and Carn Goedog -- although he did not name them. He was highly critical of the interpretations made by Stone regarding what went on at Stonehenge, and why....... but it was sad to see that his own critical faculties were used very selectively in the lecture. So -- no scrutiny of the practicalities of dragging 80 bluestones from Mynydd Preseli to Stonehenge. No scrutiny of the nature of the bluestones at Stonehenge -- he just perpetrates the myth that they are nice elegant pillars from carefully selected locations. No scrutiny of the so-called "evidence" of quarrying at the two sites made famous by MPP and his merry gang -- in spite of the fact that MPP himself has now gone on the record to admit that Rhosyfelin may not have provided any monoliths that ended up at Stonehenge.
All in all, a serious disappointment......
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E4gEhj9z_Hw
Some of the slides from the lecture, showing what might have happened and what might not have happened:
9 comments:
I am about to Share your Post on Mike Pitts and Quarrying......onto Mike Pitts' own Facebook site. I think those who loyally follow Facebook Mike Pitts will agree that here we have ANOTHER would - be Emperor with no clothes, at least on this topic. Poor soul, I sat in Waterstones bookshop noting down Pitts' passages about Pembrokeshire bluestones, and concluded that he had fallen hook, line and sinker for Rob Ixer and his geologist colleague's account [ also of course MPP, the pied piper] of what was to be discerned at Rhosyfelin " quarry". A very disappointing book in that regard.
I have put a comment on Mike's YouTube site -- he will no doubt see it, as he keeps a close eye on comments......
I don't understand how somebody can spend so much time examining the minutiae of Neolithic quarrying techniques without first checking out that quarrying did indeed happen. Just careless? I think not......
Hear hear. All is vanity, hubris. There's a heck of a lot of it down here in the soft, too cushy South.
I do recall when I read all the relative sections of Pitts' recent book, he told us the story of how he'd HIRED a car so as to journey from Marlborough ( his home) all the way to Preseli and, first archaeological stop I think, was his self - ordained, second - guessed " prehistoric quarry", Rhosyfelin. So it sounded like he'd NEVER been to Preseli/ north Pembrokeshire BEFORE!
Poor soul, prefers to stay on his side of the Severn Bridge.
Yes, from reading his account of his visits to Rhosyfelin and Carn Goedog, he had virtually no knowledge of the local prehistory. What surprised me most, though, with his text, was the sheer enthusiasm with which he apparently accepted every bit of nonsense that was fed to him by MPP and his gang. As I read it I was wondering whatever had happened to this thing called scrutiny.......
I have added just now to the Comments made on the original Post made on 21st March 21st March - almost exactly 12 months ago.
Blog readers are encouraged to read my longer - term reflection!
It was myself who made the "anonymous" comment at 20.30 yesterday, for the avoidance of doubt.
On 7th March at 22.24, you commented: "As I read it I was wondering whatever had happened to this thing called SCRUTINY" [my capitalisation].
I am reminded of a wonderful song by Scottish group Deacon Blue called " A Ship Called DIGNITY ". Well, I think that Mike Pitts, by his complete lack of his own independent scrutiny over whether or not these are actually prehistoric quarries, has simultaneously lost, in the eyes of those who consider these things overall, any dignity of esteem on this subject.
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