Megalith
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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A megalith is a large stone that has been used to construct a structure or monument, either alone or together with other stones. Megalithic describes structures made of such large stones, utilizing an interlocking system without the use of mortar or cement.
Modern theories
Megaliths were used for a variety of purposes ranging from serving as boundary markers of territory, to a reminder of past events, and to being part of the society's religion. Common motifs including crooks and axes seem to be symbols of political power, much like the crook was a symbol of Egyptian pharaohs. Amongst the indigenous peoples of India, Malaysia, Polynesia, North Africa, North America, and South America, the worship of these stones, or the use of these stones to symbolize a spirit or deity, is a possibility. In the early 20th century, some scholars believed that all megaliths belonged to one global "Megalithic culture" (hyperdiffusionism, e. g. 'the Manchester school', by Grafton Elliot Smith and William James Perry), but this has long been disproved by modern dating methods. Nor is it believed any longer that there was a European megalithic culture, although regional cultures existed, even within such a small areas as the British Isles. The archaeologist Euan Mackie wrote "Likewise it cannot be doubted that important regional cultures existed in the Neolithic period and can be defined by different kinds of stone circles and local pottery styles (Ruggles & Barclay 2000: figure 1). No-one has ever been rash enough to claim a nationwide unity of all aspects of Neolithic archaeology!"
Types of megalithic structures
The types of megalithic structures can be divided into two categories, the "Polylithic type" and the "Monolithic type." Different megalithic structures include:
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See also
- List of megalithic sites
- British megalith architecture
- Irish megalithic tombs
- Megaliths in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern
- Megaliths in the Urals
- Nordic megalith architecture
- Plain of Jars ranging from the Khorat Plateau in Thailand in the south, through Laos and to Dima Hasao of northerneastern India.
- Standing stone
- Stone circle
- Nature worship
- Bilger's rocks
- Straße der Megalithkultur - tourist route from Osnabrück to Oldenburg via some 33 Megalithic sites.
- Stone slab