Neolithic aesthetics

Neolithic recumbent stone circles are a special feature of the Grampian landscape. Now some 5000 years old, they are circles of upright stones in which the 2 tallest stones, always on the SW arc, flank a massive slab set on its side (the recumbent) and wedged so that the top edge is level. The recumbent and its flankers framed the moon as it set or rose in the southern sky and it is believed that they allowed stone-age farmers to make lunar observations so as to establish seasonal calendars.

White quartz seems to have had special meaning to the ancients and is often found at Neolithic sites. The stones used to build recumbent stone circles often contain quartz inclusions in the form of nodules, thin veins, thick bands or broad washes. However, the most spectacular use of quartz was at Auchmaliddie where the recumbent and flankers and possibly the other stones were made of blocks of solid quartzite. Sadly the circle was an early casualty of agricultural improvements and was largely destroyed. However the surviving 3 metre long recumbent and a single, fallen, flanker suggest that this circle must have have been truly spectacular before its wanton destruction. A nearby quartz gatepost might be one of the other missing stones.