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THE UNIVERSAL CALENDAR
I49
grees nearer than now. Here again we have a good way to establish
the true age of this megahthic temple. It could also mean
that Stonehenge was part of a Celtic empire whose center was at
the latitude of present-day Manchester and that the standard
Celtic foot was calculated from the local longitude of the capital
city of that time.
When was this time? Twenty alignments of Stonehenge have
resulted in computer analyses of the positions of ten most prominent
stars of 12,000 years ago, giving the exact rising and setting
points for the stars Vega, Castor, Alcyone, Aldebaran, Altair, Betelgeuse,
Rigel, Sirius, Antares, and Fomalhaut. All these stars
describe in twenty-four hours a full circle around the North Pole,
but only a part of these star circles are visible from Stonehenge,
each marking two precise points at which the path of each star
cuts the horizon. These twenty points are clearly marked in
Stonehenge, earning very high marks in both mathematics and
astronomy for our Celtic ancestors.
The solar and lunar alignments of Stonehenge are neither very
interesting nor impressive, since identical alignments can be
found all over the world. The temple itself is precisely built on
the line of the summer solstice in the northern hemisphere-
June 21. Other markers show the vernal and the autumnal
equinoxes March 21 and September 22. There are also divisions
of the circles showing the maximal north and south points of the
lunar rising and setting. All these marks can be found with
suflBcient precision by anybody who wants to do it in a few
years time.
What really impresses me about the mathematical and astronomical
skill of these ancient priests of Stonehenge is the way
they predicted lunar and solar eclipses. I would like to call it a
program of advanced mathematical studies of the Stone Age,
done with a few wooden poles and fifty-six holes. We all have
long known that the Sumerians, the Egyptians, the Babylonians,
and the Mayas were fantastic astronomers and mathematicians.
But who expected such prowess from the Celts, the Hyperboreans
of the Far North, rugged and unpolished ruffians? Yet
since the recent discoveries that civilization invaded the Mediterranean
basin from the north and after I studied the wonders
of Stonehenge, I must admit that I am very proud of having Cel-