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Aboriginal Sundial Pre-Dates Stonehenge

Posted by samzenpus on from the back-in-the-day dept.

brindafella writes "Look out, Stonehenge, here come the Wurdi Youang rocks in the Australian state of Victoria. The semi-circle of stones has been examined by an astrophysicist from Australia's premier research group, the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO), who says this arrangement of rocks is a carefully aligned solar observatory that may be 10,000 years old. It would have been created by local Aborigines, the Wathaurong people, who have occupied the area for some 25,000 years."

2 of 145 comments (clear)

  1. Sloppy Half-circle by JumperCable · · Score: 4, Insightful

    It doesn't look like much from the picture. The only supporting statement in the article is:

    its two points set in perfect alignment with the setting sun on a midsummer's day.

    I'd like a little more supporting documentation before getting all excited about this.

  2. Re:How do you put a date on something like that? by aiht · · Score: 5, Insightful

    What also puzzles me, is why cultures that create such structures, just kinda sorta die out? Like the Egyptians who built pyramids, whoever built Stonehenge, and the like?

    Answer: All cultures die out over this kind of time span. But for some reason, we just don't pay any attention to the ones that leave no evidence of ever having existed...