Stone Age Science in Britain? [and Comments and Reply

Abstract

In the last few decades, several writers have drawn attention to indications of the existence of science in nonliterate, Neolithic societies. One proponent of that idea is Alexander Thom, who has carried out extremely exact measurements of Neolithic stone monuments in Britain. Thom maintains that perhaps the main purpose of several megalithic monuments was to serve as astronomical observatories-that the exact sightlines they provide would make it possible to predict eclipses by observing extremely slight perturbations in the moon's movements along the horizon. Though there is little doubt that some megalithic monuments (e.g., Stonehenge) indicate solstices and extreme lunistices, I argue that it is unlikely that the Neolithic observers went beyond that. My argument is as follows: (1) They did not need extreme accuracy; eclipses could be predicted with a fair chance of success by much simpler means. (2) Only one relevant moonrise in five or ten would be observable with the necessary accuracy. Moreover, s...