OUTLANDER Links, Part 12: Standing Stones

As an OUTLANDER fan, I can't help but be fascinated by the many ancient stone circles found throughout the world. Before I read Diana Gabaldon's books, I'd heard of Stonehenge, of course, but I had no idea that there were so many other formations of standing stones throughout the UK and elsewhere.

I have never had the opportunity to see any of these places in person. (Still hoping to go to Scotland some day!) If any of you have seen a stone circle, feel free to post here and tell us what it was like.

Here are some pictures and links I've collected about stone circles around the world. Hope you enjoy them!

England


Stonehenge

Here's a recent episode of the PBS program "Nova", called "Secrets of Stonehenge", which explores one theory about the origins and construction of Stonehenge. It's almost an hour long, but pretty interesting, especially when they try to recreate how the ancient builders of Stonehenge managed to move those huge stones over long distances.



Castlerigg, England



The stone circle shown above is known as Long Meg and Her Daughters, located near Penrith, Cumbria, England. 

For those of you who have read "A Leaf on the Wind of All Hallows": I wonder if this might have been where Jerry MacKenzie's plane went down in October, 1941. It's in more or less the right location, it's unmistakably a stone circle, and it's clearly visible from the air. Just speculating, of course, but it works for me. <g>

Scotland



Callanish, Isle of Lewis, Scotland. The logo for my blog shows another view of the Callanish stones. I think they're beautiful, in an eerie and mysterious sort of way. <g> And the closest thing I've ever seen to what I imagine Craigh na Dun might look like.




Clava Cairns, Scotland

This picture reminds me of Claire's reaction when she visits Corrimony Cairn, where General Simon Fraser will be buried.

No buzzing, no screaming, no sensation at all. It was just a rock. After all, I thought, there was no reason why all standing stones should be assumed to mark time portals. Presumably the ancient builders had used stones to mark any place of significance— and surely a cairn like this one must have been significant. I wondered what sort of man--or woman, perhaps?--had lain here, leaving no more than an echo of their bones, so much more fragile than the enduring rocks that sheltered them.

(From An Echo in the Bone by Diana Gabaldon, chapter 75 ("Sic Transit Gloria Mundi"). Copyright© 2009 by Diana Gabaldon. All rights reserved.)