15th February 2006, 12:10 PM
Yorkshire Post opinion - History's Henges.
A site yet to reveal its secrets.
They have been called the Stonehenge of the North. Yet until it was proposed to extend the nearby quarry, comparatively few were aware of the existence, let alone the significance of the Thornborough Henges.
Perhaps this is why Tarmac Northern Ltd believed that its plan to extract sand and gravel from land bordering the henges, near Masham, would be uncontroversial.
However, the firm reckoned without the vociferous opposition of local groups which resulted in a series of surveys, raising the henges' profile and adding considerably to knowledge of this Neolithic monument.
Crucially, the verdict of such respected bodies as English Heritage conflicts dramatically with that of consultants employed by Tarmac. Far from failing to reach "thresholds of national importance", as the consultant archaeologists claim, Thornborough represents "a swathe of nationally important early prehistoric archaeology and activity", according to English Heritage.
With such a wide variance of opinion as to the site's importance, it would be foolhardy in the extreme to conclude that quarrying should be extended. This is why North Yorkshire County Council is wisely recommending rejection of the proposal.
Thornborough may not be as dramatic as Stonehenge. But the latest evidence that it, too, is linked to observation of the cosmos suggests that, like Stonehenge, it has yet to surrender the full secrets of its significance.
Save the Thornborough Henge Complex - http://www.timewatch.org
A site yet to reveal its secrets.
They have been called the Stonehenge of the North. Yet until it was proposed to extend the nearby quarry, comparatively few were aware of the existence, let alone the significance of the Thornborough Henges.
Perhaps this is why Tarmac Northern Ltd believed that its plan to extract sand and gravel from land bordering the henges, near Masham, would be uncontroversial.
However, the firm reckoned without the vociferous opposition of local groups which resulted in a series of surveys, raising the henges' profile and adding considerably to knowledge of this Neolithic monument.
Crucially, the verdict of such respected bodies as English Heritage conflicts dramatically with that of consultants employed by Tarmac. Far from failing to reach "thresholds of national importance", as the consultant archaeologists claim, Thornborough represents "a swathe of nationally important early prehistoric archaeology and activity", according to English Heritage.
With such a wide variance of opinion as to the site's importance, it would be foolhardy in the extreme to conclude that quarrying should be extended. This is why North Yorkshire County Council is wisely recommending rejection of the proposal.
Thornborough may not be as dramatic as Stonehenge. But the latest evidence that it, too, is linked to observation of the cosmos suggests that, like Stonehenge, it has yet to surrender the full secrets of its significance.
Save the Thornborough Henge Complex - http://www.timewatch.org