Sighthill Stone Circle   (www.sighthillstonecircle.net)

HISTORY

The three hills north of the M8 motorway (Summerhill, Sighthill and Broomhill) have a long association with astronomical events. From Glasgow Cathedral (built over a neolithic site) Dobie’s Loan leads to the hills on the line of midsummer sunset. Seen from the Summerhill, the midsummer sun rises over the Sighthill. Solstice fairs were held on the Summerhill until the 17^th century.

In the 18^th century the three hills were the Hundred Acre Farm, the largest dairy farm in Europe, and in the nineteenth century the St. Rollox chemical works was again the largest in Europe, while the south face of the Broomhill was cut back to make a spur of the Forth and Clyde Canal, and further still for railway sidings, so creating the dram­atic view over the city from the present hilltop.

In the 1978-79 Jobs Creation and STEP schemes the Glasgow Parks Department Ast­ro­nomy Project, headed by Duncan Lunan, designed and built the first astro­nom­ically aligned stone circle in Britain for over 3000 years in Sighthill Park on the Broomhill (Fig.1). The whinstones used were chosen from a black powder quarry in Kilsyth. It was completed on the hilltop by a Royal Navy helicopter in March 1979. Solar, lunar and stellar observations made there since have cast consid­erable light on the uses of the ancient sites of Britain.

The circle is dedicated to the late Prof. Alexander Thom and Dr. Archie Thom, Prof. Archie Roy and Dr. Euan Mackie, four of the foremost UK experts in archaeoastronomy, all connected with Glasgow University.

 PRESENT SITUATION

Due to financial cutbacks the Circle was never completed as originally planned. In particular there is nothing on site to explain what the Circle is or how it works, and it has never been a tourist attraction as planned. Although pathways were laid around it in the 1980’s  in the past they have not been not well cared for and even now access is difficult.

Vandalism is a relatively minor problem (except for fire damage): graffiti are re­moved by winter storms. However the site has no wheelchair access, and there is nothing to say when or by whom the circle was built, to whom it is dedicated or how it works.

 REDEVELOPMENT

When the landscaping was done there were no Astronomy Project personnel to supervise and as a result the plan was misinterpreted: the contours of the ground were flattened and as a result the stones were partially buried. One major aim should be to restore the stones to their intended height, with their tops at adult eye level.

It would be very desirable to have an identifying plaque to tell people where to stand to see midsummer sunrise, etc., over the Circle. There are four unused stones still on-site, two of which were intended to be used to mark the equinoctial sunrise and sunset and which could now be erected, and the other two could be used to support a raised plaque, which should be three-dimensional so that it can be used by visually impaired visitors.

The 1979 brochure about the Circle, never issued, should be updated and print­ed. It can be linked to other local astronomical sites including the recently re­stored Airdrie Observ­atory and a concrete circle built later than the Sighthill one, at Linwood.

Unveiling the plaque should be timed for the midsummer solstice. In 2000 the Circle was fea­tured in a mural by community artist Jim Campbell at Sighthill Youth Centre  and the rededication of the Circle should be the opportunity for a local com­munity arts fest­i­val. One idea for this is a themed event on ‘The Stones of Scotland’, e.g. gemstones, Torridon sandstone, Aberdeen granite, the Fossil Grove, the Stone of Destiny, Ailsa Craig curling stones, etc..

The Circle could become an emblem for the regeneration of the Sighthill scheme, to involve the appropriate funding agencies and improve the overall environment of the scheme.

Another Astronomy Project plan was to have the Circle represent the Sun in a model of the Solar System to the scale of the city. The inner planets would be represented by markers in Sighthill Park, and the outer planets elsewhere in the city out to the bound­ary. These would provide links to other attractions such as the Steelhenge sculpture on Strathclyde University campus, the new Glasgow Science Centre, and the regeneration of the Forth and Clyde Canal.

 Why not book a talk at the Stone Circle with Duncan Lunan?

Contact: sighthillstonecircle@talktalk.net

©astronomersofthefuture2010