On Stonehenge

by Fred Hoyle

Argues that the purpose of Stonehenge was to predict the occurrence of eclipses, and reviews the resulting cultural implications

Genres: History, Science, Nonfiction, Astronomy

Paperback

First published January 1, 1977

About the author

Professor Sir Fred Hoyle was one of the most distinguished, creative, and controversial scientists of the twentieth century. He was a Fellow of St John’s College (1939-1972, Honorary Fellow 1973-2001), was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1957, held the Plumian Chair of Astronomy and Experimental Philosophy (1958-1972), established the Institute of Theoretical Astronomy in Cambridge (now part of the Institute of Astronomy), and (in 1972) received a knighthood for his services to astronomy.

Hoyle was a keen mountain climber, an avid player of chess, a science fiction writer, a populariser of science, and the man who coined the phrase 'The Big Bang'.

Reviews

[Dan Trefethen · Rating 2 out of 5]

I picked up this 1977 book because I knew Fred Hoyle was an astrophysicist and science fiction writer, and might have something interesting to say about Stonehenge. It turns out of have lots of math and geometry about the site, more than I cared to follow, but great if you have the bandwidth to immerse yourself in it.

Every writer on Stonehenge seems to have a theory. Hoyle's is centered around the Aubrey Circles that ring the outer part of the site, which he claims can be used to predict lunar eclipses. He acknowledges that Stonehenge was built in stages, a thousand or more years apart, and he knows that it could be used for other purposes. His lunar eclipse theory is the reason for this book, though.

[Natalie Chickey · Rating 3 out of 5]

Because we do not have definitive answers, any book on the mysteries of Stonehenge is fascinating for their research and ultimate theories. Author Fred Hoyle did a nice job of explaining his theory about the astrological importance of astronomy, particularly eclipses and how mathematically precise the placement of the stones turned out to be.

[Jonathan Morris · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is probably the most easily understandable of the well-known textbooks which propose that Stonehenge was related to astronomy. Whilst I don't necessarily agree with all of the conclusions, I rate it highly because it is so well written.