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North Wales hillfort test of Iron Age communication
BBC ^ | March 20, 2011 | Unknown

Posted on 03/20/2011 6:22:57 PM PDT by decimon

An experiment has shed light on how Iron Age people communicated from their hilltop homes 2,500 years ago.

About 200 volunteers stood on the summit of 10 hillforts in north Wales, the Wirral and Cheshire, and signalled to each other with torches.

Their aim was to learn if communities used the summits to warn each other.

"It was a success," said archaeologist Erin Robinson. "It captured the public's imagination and we made extra links we did not think were possible."

Saturday night's Hilltop Glow event was rescheduled after December's severe weather.

The ancient sites used were on the Clwydian Range; Halkyn Mountain, near Holywell, Flintshire; a lowland site at Wirral; and the Sandstone Ridge, Cheshire.

(Excerpt) Read more at bbc.co.uk ...


TOPICS: History
KEYWORDS: archaeoastronomy; godsgravesglyphs; leylines; megaliths; oldstraighttrack
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Map of 10 Iron Age forts involved in the project to try to communicate
1 posted on 03/20/2011 6:23:00 PM PDT by decimon
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To: SunkenCiv

Old flame ping.


2 posted on 03/20/2011 6:24:02 PM PDT by decimon
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To: decimon
"how Iron Age people could have communicated from their hilltop homes 2,500 years ago"

"Their aim was to learn if communities could have used the summits to warn each other"

Italics inserted.

Does this really tell them anything that a study of topographical data could not?
3 posted on 03/20/2011 6:28:07 PM PDT by Christian Engineer Mass (25ish Cambridge MA grad student. Many younger conservative Christians out there? __ Click my name)
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To: decimon

So, what was the message they sent over the network?


4 posted on 03/20/2011 6:29:23 PM PDT by Red_Devil 232 (VietVet - USMC All Ready On The Right? All Ready On The Left? All Ready On The Firing Line!)
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To: Christian Engineer Mass

I think we’ve pretty much known this forever. All you have to do is watch a good western!!


5 posted on 03/20/2011 6:31:49 PM PDT by Sacajaweau
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To: Red_Devil 232
So, what was the message they sent over the network?

Probably just a flame war.

6 posted on 03/20/2011 6:35:15 PM PDT by decimon
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To: Sacajaweau

Yeah, kinda like stone age Indians using smoke signals to talk to each other. What a bunch of idiots some scientists are.


7 posted on 03/20/2011 6:35:27 PM PDT by calex59
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To: decimon
Wales!?

PhotobucketPhotobucket

Photobucket

8 posted on 03/20/2011 6:36:06 PM PDT by gorush (History repeats itself because human nature is static)
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To: Christian Engineer Mass
Does this really tell them anything that a study of topographical data could not?

Field testing.

9 posted on 03/20/2011 6:36:16 PM PDT by decimon
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To: decimon

LOL Nice one!


10 posted on 03/20/2011 6:38:36 PM PDT by Red_Devil 232 (VietVet - USMC All Ready On The Right? All Ready On The Left? All Ready On The Firing Line!)
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To: decimon

torches, huh?

http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&cd=1&ved=0CBgQFjAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.baxterboo.com%2Fcatdogblog%2Fpost.cfm%2Fvideo-synchronized-sheepherding&rct=j&q=synchronized%20sheep%20videos&ei=e6qGTe2LA5P4swPpsKTYBQ&usg=AFQjCNF5YoBX9b4c-QXMBfPu_O3GB5FJ1g&cad=rja


11 posted on 03/20/2011 6:42:55 PM PDT by bigheadfred (THE ZOMBIE APOCALYPSE HAS BEGUN)
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To: decimon; StayAt HomeMother; Ernest_at_the_Beach; 1010RD; 21twelve; 24Karet; 2ndDivisionVet; ...

· GGG managers are SunkenCiv, StayAt HomeMother, and Ernest_at_the_Beach ·
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Thanks decimon.

To all -- please ping me to other topics which are appropriate for the GGG list.
 

· History topic · history keyword · archaeology keyword · paleontology keyword ·
· Science topic · science keyword · Books/Literature topic · pages keyword ·


12 posted on 03/20/2011 6:44:51 PM PDT by SunkenCiv (The 2nd Amendment follows right behind the 1st because some people are hard of hearing.)
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To: Christian Engineer Mass

It is only theoretical to see if it’s possible. It’s another thing to see if it was of practical use, in the event of an invading army.


13 posted on 03/20/2011 6:49:01 PM PDT by Jonty30
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To: Jonty30
"In The Lord of the Rings, a series of seven beacons is used as a signaling device between Gondor and Rohan. [1] In the film adaptation of The Return of the King, Gandalf has Pippin light the beacon closest to Minas Tirith. The series is then lit, thereby notifying Rohan's King Théoden that Gondor calls for help in the battle against Sauron."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beacon
14 posted on 03/20/2011 6:54:02 PM PDT by saltlick
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To: decimon
Check out the visibility at Manchester Airport just a little further North.

http://www.checkwx.com/wxmain/code/EGCC

Look at the 24 hour trends tab - often the visibility is listed as less than 10 Km - a field test in typical English weather is quite appropriate as you say...:^)

It's not like our visibilities in AZ...

15 posted on 03/20/2011 7:08:31 PM PDT by az_gila
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To: saltlick

Loved the movie and, knowing Tolkien, it was certainly based on historical fact.

It’s just a matter of working out the kinks so you don’t mistake a pyre or human sacrifice for a call for help.


16 posted on 03/20/2011 7:14:57 PM PDT by Jonty30
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To: Red_Devil 232
So, what was the message they sent over the network?

So, is Free Republic down, or what? We are logged in down here.

17 posted on 03/20/2011 7:15:38 PM PDT by centurion316
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To: Jonty30
It’s just a matter of working out the kinks so you don’t mistake a pyre or human sacrifice for a call for help.

Haha, that's right!

And another historical example:

"One if by land, and two if by sea"

Good for modern lovers of liberty to be familiar with tactics of old.
18 posted on 03/20/2011 7:29:22 PM PDT by saltlick
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To: decimon

Iron Age Twitter.


19 posted on 03/20/2011 7:33:19 PM PDT by 6SJ7 (atlasShruggedInd = TRUE)
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To: decimon

An lattice of Polished bronze shields were used as parabolic oil/torch reflectors, range 15 kilometers from a 150 meter-high hill. [First used by the Greeks signaling against Xerxes and also by Alexander>?]


20 posted on 03/20/2011 7:35:42 PM PDT by bunkerhill7
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