Index

Internet Book of Shadows, (Various Authors), [1999], at sacred-texts.com

GLENN INNES STANDING STONES: THE FIRST STANDING STONES OF MODERN TIMES

Glenn Innes in northern NSW is home to many people descended from

Scottish, Welsh, Cornish, Manx and Irish immigrants. The streets have

Gaelic street signs, and in a marvellous initiative, the local Council have erected a stone circle "similar to those erected by Celtic People throughout Europe centuries ago". Three stones - named Gaelic, Bry- thonic and Australis - are the focal point of the circle; on the op- posite side of the circle four stones form the Southern Cross, with a

Celtic stone acting as a pointer. Outside of the circle, stones at each of the cardinal points form an Ionic Cross.

There are a total of 38 stones, with 24 being in the circle. Each one stands approximately 12 feet above the ground, and weighs several ton.

Parts of the array of stones are intended to act as a calender, whilst other parts have a religious significance. Calculations by the Royal

Australian Hydrographic Office were used to determine the position of the Winter Solstice; the positions of the Summer Solstice sunrise and sunset were observed on December 22nd 1990.

Also in NSW, another stone circle - with a difference! At Mt Annan

Botanical Gardens, 15 basalt crystal columns have been erected in a circle to form a "sundial of human involvement". This analemmatic sundial uses a movable marker to cast a shadow. And the moveable marker? A human, with arms raised above their head! The circle is so situated that it is possible to look out across the Blue Mountains, to the Sydney skyline in the distance.

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