ABSTRACT
The initial effect of Gerald S. Hawkins's work was to confirm that the solar and lunar extremes were reflected repeatedly in the Stonehenge alignments. He identified ten solstice alignments, a like number for the extreme lunar rising and setting positions, and four for what Alexander Thorn has called the "minor lunar standstill." Henge monuments, named for the low bank and ditch that surround the stones at Stonehenge, are earthen enclosures. The entrance through the enclosure at Stonehenge is roughly oriented on the midsummer solstice sunrise. For stone circles, cursuses, and henge earthworks, the possibilities become much wider. The very large henges are known to have been occupied, unlike their smaller counterparts. Publication of MegalithicLunar observatories in 1971 indicated Professor Thorn's view of megalithic astronomy had evolved. The work of the Thorns might seem to have answered adequately whether megalithic astronomers were sufficiently knowledgeable to have predicted eclipses.
