SCRIPT ON KESWICK OBSERVATION STONE 227

the Rig," a title of the Gothic kings, and cognate with the Latin Rex, Regis, and the Sanskrit Raja of the Indo-Aryans, and the "Ricon" of the Briton coins (see later). In searching for possible markings on the stones of this Circle in August, 1919-no markings having been previously reported -I enlisted the kind co-operation of my friend Dr. Islay Muirhead, in a minute scrutiny of each individual stone, and we started off in opposite directions. Shortly afterwards a shout from my friend that he had noticed some artificial marks on a stone on the western border brought me to the spot, where I recognized that the undoubted markings on this stone (see Fig. 27) resembled generally the Sumerian linear script with which I had become familiar. The marks read literally in Sumerian word-signs "Seeing the Low Sun" which was presumably "Seeing the Sun on the Horizon," and it was written in characters of before 2500 B.C.

FIG. 27. Sighting "Sumerian" Marks on Observation Stone in

Keswick Stone Circle.

The position of this marked or inscribed stone in the Keswick Circle is in the S.W. section of the Circle. It is the stone marked No. 26 in the annexed survey-plan of the Keswick Circle by Dr. W. D. Anderson. The stone is an undressed boulder, like the other stones of the Circle, but is broad and flattish and, unlike most of the other stones of the

See Fig. 27 b-d. Br. 9403.
Ib. 414, and T.R.C. 243.

cp. B.B.W. 44.

C.A.S., XV (New Series) 1914-15, 99. The Keswick Circle, like many others of the larger Circles, has a radius of about fifty feet. In the Plan the unshaded stones are supposed by Dr. Anderson to indicate sunrise, and the shaded to have been probably used for star observations."

Circle, it could never have been a standing pillar-stone. It is what I call, in view of the evidence to be seen presently, "The Observation Table-Stone," and it bears the inscribed signs on its flattish top. It appears to be in its original site, but swung round or fallen somewhat forward to the S.E., presumably through undermining (possibly in search for buried treasure, as has happened with similar stones elsewhere). Or it may have been deliberately swung slightly out of its original position and tilted to its present position by the later erectors of the inner quadrangle or so-called "temple" (see Plan), which is clearly a late structure and presumably Druidical, erected after the site was abandoned by the "Sun-worshippers" (probably after their conversion to Christianity) and analogous to the quasi-Druidical building which, we shall see, was erected within the Stonehenge Circle. For this marked stone of the Keswick Circle is now orientated towards the northern border of the inner temple," and in a line which has no solar or astronomical significance whatsoever. The engraved signs, despite the weathering of ages, are distinct though somewhat shallow, the lines being about a quarter of an inch deep and about a third of an inch wide.1 And these signs on this stone in Cumber-land or the "Land of the Cymrs or Cumbers" (or Sumers) may be read as the Sumerian word-sign for Seeing the Sunrise."

The manner in which the Sunrise was observed by the early astronomers who erected this Keswick Stone Circle in "prehistoric" times is now clearly disclosed by the location, orientation and inscription on this Observation Stone, bearing these markings. A reference to the plan on p. 229 will show that these engraved marks on this stone (No. 26), forming an Observation Table-Stone, namely, the "diamond" and

The "diamond " portion of the sign is not a true rectangle (and this also is the case in the Sumerian script) but has a width of 4 inches from N. to S. and 3 inches from E. to W., with sides about 3 inches in length. The marking on this Keswick stone is substantially identical with the Sumerian compound word-sign, which is a picture-sign for Eye (or_Śi, thus disclosing Sumerian origin of our English word "see (and the Sun, in which the Sun is for lapidary purposes represented as a diamond shape. This compound sign is given the value of “Rising Sun" (B.B.W., 2, 215); and thus meaning literally "Seeing the Rising Sun."

"

"

arrow-head-like signs, were used like the back-sight of a rifle (see Fig. 28) aimed at the point of the Sunrise, so as to obtain an exact sight-line in "Shooting the Sun" as with

The eye of the observer, stationed at this Table-Stone in the S.W. of the Circle, looked along the middle line of the

diamond" (the apex and angular sides of which, supplemented by the arrow-head angles, correspond to the angular notch on the back-sight of a rifle) and gained thereby a sight-line which passed through the centre of the Circle, and beyond this passed in the axis of the circle out to the horizon along the edge of the corresponding standing pillarstone on the N.E. (presumably stone No. 6 on plan, which acted like the front-sight of a rifle). When the Sunrise point coincided exactly with this sight-line, it yielded the required date in the Solar calendar of the Phoenician erectors of this Stone Circle observatory.

This observation stone and its marking may now help to settle the existing confusion of opinion as to the position of the "centre" of this particular Circle. For this Keswick

SUNRISE SIGHTING MARK AT STONEHENGE 231

Circle is not a true circle, but is somewhat pear-shaped; and Dr. Anderson's" centre" differs considerably in position from the centre as estimated by previous observers.1

[Moreover, his alignment of the midsummer solstice sunrise in the plan appears to have been drawn, not from the actual visible sunlight point on the hilly skyline to the east of the Keswick Circle, but from the theoretical sunrise point on the invisible lower horizon beyond the hills, which is considerably to the north of the actual sunrise on the hilly skyline. All these differences, if corrected, may tend to bring the solstice sightline towards the stone with the Sumerian markings No. 26. In view of all these differences of personal equation in the various estimations of the centre of the circle and in the summer solstice line, it is desirable that further fresh observations of this line and the actual centre be made with special reference to this stone No. 26 bearing the markings.]

Following up the discovery of the Observation Stone at Keswick, I searched several other of the larger Circles for corresponding stones in the S.W. sector for such markings; and I found similar flattish stones in the same relative position in all of the larger relatively complete Circles containing that sector which I have been able to examine.

At Stonehenge, which I visited later in that year (1919) I went by my compass straight to the corresponding S.W. stone in the Stonehenge "older" Circle; and, although hitherto unremarked by previous writers, I found that it was a Table-Stone, and that this Stonehenge Table-Stone bore the same old diamond-shaped sign engraved upon the middle of its flat top as at Keswick.

This Stonehenge Observation Table-Stone with its Sumerian markings is unfortunately very much worn by the weather and more especially by the feet of visitors, who use it as a stepping stone, its top being flat and only about two feet above the ground level, and the stone of a somewhat

1C. W. Dymond in his plan in C.A.S., 1879-1880, obtains a centre to the west of Dr. Anderson's, in the middle line of the N. and S. entrances; and Prof. J. Morrow (Proc. Durham Univ. Philosoph. Socy., 1908-1909) selected a centre to the south of this, and about 18 inches N.W. of Dr. Anderson's centre (see Anderson loc. cit., 102). There is also an earlier plan with different orientation by J. Otley in 1849 (see L.S., 35).

• See Anderson, loc. cit., 104-106.