Not nine ladies dancing, but nine stones set in a circle, the Loch Buie Stone Circle on the Isle of Mull in Scotland, which I visited a couple of years ago with my travel companions, Cathy and Jonathan.
The circle was originally nine granite stones, about 12 metres in diameter, with the tallest stone being about 2 metres high. It is mainly composed of granite slabs which have been positioned with their flatter faces towards the inside of the circle. One of the original stones has been removed and replaced in recent times with a low boulder.I wonder why the original stone was removed and replaced with a boulder. Below is a photo of the large outlier stone.
There are 3 single stones in the field at differing distances from the circle. The nearest of these outlying stones is 5m away to the south-east, and is only 1m tall. The second outlier is a spectacular monolith 3m high and set about 40m away to the south-west. Also south-west of the circle, 107m away, is the third outlier, over 2 metres high. The stone is broken at the top and was probably taller when erected.
To the left is a picture of me standing beside a stone to give you an idea of the size of one of the stones in the circle, which varied in height and width.
Cathy said the photo reminded her of an illustration of Aslan and the evil White Queen from The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, and the resemblance is plain. If I had tried to strike the pose, I couldn't have done a better job.
And what the subject of this post has to do with Christmas, I can't say, except today is the ninth day of Christmas, and there are nine stones in the circle. Gimme a break.
"Cathy said the photo reminded her of an illustration of Aslan and the evil White Queen from The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, and the resemblance is plain."
ReplyDeleteYou're clearly "not a tame lion", are you, Mimi? You turned the Witch to stone! *LOL*
No JCF, I'm not a time lion, and I didn't know my own power.
DeleteAnd what the subject of this post has to do with Christmas, I can't say, except today is the ninth day of Christmas, and there are nine stones in the circle.
ReplyDeleteThere's a different group of nine stones on the top of the Pennines east of Kirby Stephen called the Nine Standards. The long-distance Coast to Coast path from Irish Sea to North Sea (about 190 miles) passes it.
I walked the Coast to Coast in 1990 with a bunch of friends from church. We finished the walk and spent the last night up the coast in Whitby, in the youth hostel across the road from the church and the remains of the abbey (at the top of 199 steps). We went over to the church and reflected on the Nine Standards - where we crossed the main east-west watershed and down into what I regard as God's own country - and set that against the nine standards from Galatians 5 (aka the fruit of the Spirit), and how we'd had to use them to complete the journey...
James, what a lovely story. I visited Whitby, which I thought a lovely place. I believe it was my first time to see the North Sea, which had intrigued me for a long time.
DeleteWhat struck me about the stone circle was its age and the thought that humans set them in place so very long ago, which made the area seem magical. Now your mention of the fruits of the Spirit remind me that I practiced them as we walked through bog and sheep shit from the road to the circle.
I once traveled by train from Manchester to Sheffield by mistake, as I thought I was on a train to Leeds, but the ride turned out to be a blessing in disguise, because I crossed through the National Park and saw beautiful scenery in the Pennines along the way.
What JCF said!!!! x10 !!!!!
ReplyDeleteNor are you a tame lion, margaret.
DeleteSee, my thought is that the Witch has disguised herself as the stone. All part of her cunning plan.
ReplyDeleteDo you remember the field full of sheep and cow pats we had to plough through to get to the circle, Mimi? ...
Cathy, so the Witch is still waiting to pounce.
DeleteI will never forget the bog with the sheep shit. To this day, I am proud of myself for not asking how much farther we had to go before we reached the stones. I must say the tramp through the bog was worth it, wasn't it? For the stones and for the beautiful scenery surrounding the field.
I think she has hidden herself until you leave, Mimi, then she will come out of hiding and so will the others, and they will all dance cackling in a circle.
ReplyDeleteIt was certainly worth a visit and the cow pats were all part of it. :)
Cackling and dancing?
DeleteAnd I lost all my pictures. I guess it was the witch.