Circles of Stone

by Dan Arnold

  “Welcome to South Africa, the cradle of humanity.” Jake said, as he greeted the arrivals.

  “I thought East Africa claimed that distinction.” Harry said.

  “It goes back and forth, but that’s what the United Nations calls this part of Africa.”

  “In that case, it’s good to be home. I haven’t been here in ages.” Adrienne said, with a wink.

  Jake greeted his Louisiana friend by his former call sign, “Hello, Boudreaux one. How are you?”

  “I’m good, LT. What’s the mission?”

  “Aerial recon and troop transport. I‘ve arranged for the use of a Bell 212. Will that do the trick?”

  “It depends. The 212 is a twin engine with a range of about two hundred and seventy miles. It does one hundred and thirty miles an hour, so you only have about two hours flying time. On the plus side, it seats twelve or carries a full payload. How old is it?”

  Jake shrugged, waggling his hand.

  “Local maintenance?”

  “Yep”

  Phillipe shook his head.

  “I’ll bet it’s at least thirty years old. We’d better have a look at it.”

  Harry looked skeptical.

  “I thought we were going to explore some kind of ruins. Why are we talking about flying around in an antique helicopter?”

  Jake grinned.

  “Hello, Harry. The chopper isn’t an antique—it’s a classic. The ruins we’re going to explore cover a huge area, and most of them can only be seen from the air or by satellite.”

  “I don’t see how I can be of much help doing that. To become familiar with the history, culture and traditions of the indigenous tribes, I need to talk to people on the ground.”

  “You will, but first I want you to see the scope of what we’re researching.”

  Adrienne slapped the big man on the back. Considering his size, and hers, he probably didn’t even feel it.

  “Well then, Harry, let’s scope it out,” she said.

  Scowling, he replied, “Oh man, do I have to? Helicopters are loud.”

  “Really? They’re loud—that’s what bothers you?”

  Harry chuckled.

  “I’ll be alright, if you’ll just hold my hand.”

  “I couldn’t hold one of your hands with both of mine, but I can probably hold one finger.”

  “Oh, no you don’t. I saw what you did to that guy’s finger in Costa Rica.”

  Adrienne smiled.

  “Well, He shouldn’t have put his hand where he did. A girl has to know how to defend herself.”

  “Ain’t nobody gonna touch you while I’m around.”

  “Thank you, Harry. You always say the sweetest things.”

  Jake and Phillipe looked at each other and laughed.

  7-Barberton, Ehlanzeni District, Mpumalanga Province, South Africa

  After landing in Barberton, the team checked into the Highveld Inn. The hotel had mountain views, a swimming pool, a decent restaurant with indoor and outdoor dining, a bar and even a billiards room. Not that any of it would matter. If past experience held true to this adventure, they wouldn’t be lounging around the hotel. They’d all be out in the field for extended periods. More often than not, their beds would be in the bush.

  Over supper they discussed the approach to the project.

  “The goal of our research is to determine if there was a civilization here in this region prior to recorded history, that means, before the Bronze Age, six or eight thousand years ago.” Jake began.

  “I’m sure there was,” Harry said. “The question is what type of civilization. We should start by defining what you mean by the term itself. What do you consider civilization to be, Jake?”

  “Good point. Until recently it was believed that early hominids were all hunter/gatherers. They roamed in search of the next meal, always struggling just to survive. I was taught that civilization began with agriculture. Once man began to farm, we were able to have a steady and dependable food supply. That stability provided time to explore creativity. This was the dawn of civilization. We developed pottery, weaving, painting, masonry, and so on. We began to build permanent structures instead of living in caves or temporary shelters. Within short order, we began to look to the stars to track seasons and navigate our world. We were taught all this began some eight thousand years ago.

  Today that thinking is being challenged.

  The Gobekli Tepe site in Turkey is a good example. It’s said to be at least fourteen thousand years old. That means it would be about eight thousand years older than Stonehenge. The site is a cluster of multiple circular buildings with complex masonry architecture. There are stone walls, massive stone support beams, paving, and elaborate carvings. The site is so big they say it will take fifty years to research it. As of now, no one knows what the complex is, who built it, or why. The only thing everyone seems sure of is the site pre-dates the Bronze Age by several thousand years. That means it was constructed in the Stone Age.”

  Adrienne began singing, “Flintstones, meet the Flintstones…”

  Everyone chuckled at that.

  Jake continued his narrative, “Here’s something interesting; Gobekli Tepe was buried in the entirety. Someone built a cluster of round buildings that would have taken dozens of skilled workers years to accomplish, decorated them with elaborate carvings, and then they buried the entire complex. Because of that burial the site was protected from most forms of ruin and destruction.

  Here, In South Africa, we find a stone circle being called ‘Adam’s Calendar’. It doesn’t look like much because it’s been fully exposed to the elements for many thousands of years. The builders are unknown and its function is the subject of considerable conjecture. As usual, when science doesn’t know what an ancient structure is, they say it was probably a temple or a celestial observatory. They said the same thing about Stonehenge and Gobleki Tepe. It doesn’t mean it wasn’t a temple or observatory, but the fact is, like the Nazca Lines, we have no idea why they built it. We only know someone went to a great deal of trouble to haul huge slabs of stone, and arrange them in a circle with two standing pillars in the middle.”

  “You mentioned the Nazca Lines. Isn’t building structures, which can only be seen from ‘the heavens,’ thought to be the way ancient people attempted to communicate with the gods?”

  “Yes, among other theories. We can’t rule it out, but we won’t know what the calendar site actually is until we do further research.”

  “Is that site going to be our primary focus?” Harry asked.

  “Africa is rich with archeological sites. The Republic of South Africa alone has more ruins, caves, fossils and mysteries than they have resources to explore. Even I have a limit to what I can afford. We’ll limit our focus to the stone circles. That means the ‘Calendar’ site and the thousands of so called ‘kraals’ that litter the countryside. There are far too many of the latter, so we’ll limit the scope of our research to this general area.”

  “So, that’s where I come in. We’ll use the chopper for aerial recon and transport.”

  “Roger that, Boudreaux One.”

  Harry said, “What about me? I’ve seen enough from the air. I need to talk to the locals”

  “I know, that’s why I rented the four wheel drive, vehicles. You can use one of them for your local travels. When you need to go farther afield, Phillipe will fly you.”

  “What about me? What do you have in mind?”

  “…Two things, Adrienne. First, I want you to thoroughly examine the calendar site. My geology training isn’t as extensive as yours. We need to determine if there was any possible natural event that could’ve created the standing stones in the arrangement we see up there.”

  “Ok, what’s the second thing?”

  “We’re going to have a look at some of those stone circles connected by miles of stone lined paths. What kind of stones are they and where did they come from.”

  “Cool, you know me, I love to get stoned.” She grinned and
sang, “…Everybody must get stoned.”

  Jake just shook his head, chuckling.

  8-Everything old is new again

  After supper, Dr. Jacob Walker was in full lecture mode.

  “There’s nothing unusual about any man-made structure that’s basically circular. Circles are commonly seen in nature, straight lines—very seldom. The circle is a universal symbol of completion or continuity. It’s been associated with fertility. In one form or another it’s seen on every continent and in every culture.

  Most of the dwellings of our own Native Americans were cylindrical, whether they were teepees or wickiups, round was the ideal shape to be wind resistant, and shed snow and rain.

  Circles are also one of the easiest symbols to draw without measuring. If you drive a stake in the ground, or lay a stone and walk around it, you can mark a crude circle on the ground. If you use a length of rope, even a vine, tied to the center point, you can create a nearly perfect circle. Trying to create straight lines of equal length and distance is more complicated. This is why nearly all of the local tribal kraals and huts are circular. We saw from the air that this is still the usual way they’re built today.

  What’s interesting here in this region is that even though there are thousands of old stone circle structures which the locals assume are ancient kraals, none of them are being used for holding livestock. Additionally, some of the circular structures are very small and have no openings or doorways. In fact, some of the larger ones have no openings either. That’s odd.

  So, we have these two anomalies to research. One, the calendar site on the edge of the plateau, the other is the innumerable stone circle structures the locals call abandoned kraals.

  Here’s the way we’ll go at this. Harry, you contact tribal people in the area and learn what you can about both the calendar site and the other circles of stone.

  Adrienne, you and I will start at the calendar site. I want to hear your analysis of the geology. We’ll start there and then begin exploring some of the other circles.

  Beaudreaux, you’re our ride. You’ll fly us up to the calendar first thing tomorrow. We’ll all meet back here tomorrow night to discuss progress and determine our next objective.”

  “I’m looking forward to it. I can’t wait to meet the locals and show them some love,” Harry said.

  “You got to give me some lovin’…,” Adriennene sang.

  ***

  Adrienne knelt at the base of one of the standing stones.

  “Jake, contrary to my first impression, which was the stones are a naturally occurring feature, I have to conclude the arrangement wasn’t caused by an earthquake or other violent movement of the earth. These aren’t a geological accident. These stones were most likely brought here from somewhere else.”

  “That was my thinking, and pretty much everyone else’s. That brings to mind a number of questions.”

  “Right, questions like, when, by whom and why?”

  Jake nodded.

  “Yes.”

  “As a geologist I can offer some general information. The bedrock in the area consists of Greenbelt granite. That’s an igneous rock. The monoliths are dolomite, sometimes called dolostone or dolomitic limestone. It’s a pretty common formation, but it has mysterious origins. You see limestone is derived from sedimentation in a seabed. But dolomitic limestone has a great deal of magnesium in it. There is some speculation that the magnesium may have come from an ancient meteor impact.”

  “How is that pertinent?”

  “It isn’t. I just think it’s interesting. What is pertinent is there is no evidence this site, as we observe it now, has ever been disturbed by anything other than the gradual changes brought by the forces of nature. It appears time has not been gentle. Several stones have fallen over. The circular shape is nearly indiscernible. I suspect it’s because the surface soil of the plateau has been sliding over the edge of the escarpment an inch or two per century.”

  “So are you agreeing with my initial assessment?”

  “I am.”

  “I want to show you some markings I think are man-made.”

  “That too, would be interesting.”

  Jake led Adrienne over to a megalith at the edge of the precipice. He pointed out the grooves at each end.

  “I believe these grooves were carved by whoever brought the stones here,” he said. “What do you think?”

  “Well, they’re not natural. Someone made them. Judging by the extreme erosion on the surface of the stone and the age of the lichen, I’d say the grooves have been in the rock for as long as these stones have been here.”

  “I’ll show you some more.”

  When they’d concluded the examination of the marks, Jake showed her what appeared to be purposeful alignment of the standing stones along a north/south axis. He pointed out how the shadow of the larger standing stone in the center moved across the face of the smaller one.

  “This whole cosmic astronomical connection thing doesn’t interest me,” Adrienne said. “I wonder if these stones have magnetic properties.”

  “Why would they?”

  “Ferromagnetism can occur in rock with a high crystalline content, like this dolomite. It can be caused by lightning. This plateau has probably been hit any number of times.”

  “What brought that to mind?”

  “You mentioned a north/south orientation. That reminded me of magnetic poles. I know a lot about the laws of attraction, Baby.”

  Jake chuckled.

  “It reminded me of the stone circle at Nabta Playa, the only megalithic circle in Egypt. It’s located almost exactly due north of here. Like this place, it has an alignment with the sun and cardinal directions. The similarities between this structure and that one suggest we will need to establish this as an archeological dig site. They found significant artifacts under Nabta Playa. There’s never been any sponsored scientific research here.”

  “Won’t that require permits and the participation of a major university?”

  “The short answer is, yes, it will. I don’t have the time or inclination to pursue that angle, but I’ll recommend it to the Minister of Antiquities. I doubt he’ll do anything about it, but that’s not our problem.

  We don’t know how old this site is, but we know it’s ancient, at least several thousand years old. That’s enough for now. Hello, it looks like we have company.”

  A few dozen yards away, a four wheel drive vehicle slowed to a stop. The man who emerged from the truck wore an angry countenance, barely cloaking his hostile rage with an authoritative manner. He pointed at them as he approached.

  “Who are you people? This is a protected bird sanctuary. You can’t fly a helicopter in here without permission.”

  “Hello, I’m Dr. Jacob Walker. I was here the other day with Dr. Stefan Aleksander, the Minister of Antiquities for the Republic of South Africa. We have official permission to research this structure.”

  “I know nothing about that, and I don’t care. Get back in your helicopter and get out of here.”

  “May I ask who you are?”

  “My name is Dingane Gogo. I am the custodian here.”

  “I apologize for this intrusion. We’ll leave immediately. We’ll come back later by automobile?”

  “No, you are not welcome here. This is a sacred place. Go away and do not return.”

  “I was given to understand this site is becoming a popular tourist destination. Are you saying all people are unwelcome here, or just us?”

  “Those who come with open minds and hearts are welcome. They may learn to hear the gods. You scientific types are skeptics, or worse. You will anger the gods. Go, now!”

  ***

  As the chopper lifted away from the site, Adrienne asked a question.

  “Jake, what did you make of all that talk about angering the gods? He told us he was the custodian of the site, but you told us the site was part of some sort of sanctuary for wild birds.”

  Jake nodded thoughtfully, as he watched th
e escarpment disappear from view. After a moment he spoke into his microphone.

  “He was so angry; I didn’t want to annoy him any further. I can understand why landing a helicopter in a bird sanctuary could be inappropriate, but he wasn’t really as disturbed by that, as much as by our just being there. He seems to hold to some traditional belief, with which I’m presently unfamiliar. We’ll have to have Harry look into it.”

  Adrienne winked and said, “That’s what she said.”

  9-The Khoikhoi

  Chief Onga-Oma surveyed the land before him. It was good land. Water flowed in rivers and streams. There were rolling hills, savannahs and mountains. Wildlife abounded. This would be a good home for his people.

  As was customary, the shaman, Inapitak would have to be consulted, but Onga-Oma was confident these lands would serve his people well. The king of Sheba had been generous in directing them here. The only requirement the great king had in exchange was that Onga-Oma’s people locate the golden nuggets and the rocks with the golden lines.

  Turning, the Chief looked out over his people and their herds of cattle and goats. His tribe now boasted nearly a thousand warriors, four hundred head of cattle, nearly as many goats, and hundreds of women and children. Yes, this land would be a very good home for all of them. Their life of wandering was ended. A new life in a permanent home would begin in this place.

  Later in the day, three of his scouts reported finding some odd structures built entirely of stacked stones. In the company of Inapitak and his personal guards, he left the encampment and followed the scouts to the location.

  To his amazement, on the top of a hill, they came upon a circle of stones stacked nearly as high as a man’s shoulder. Within the circle were more, smaller circles, also built of stacked stones. Each stone was about as long as his forearm and about as thick. A few were larger or smaller. Altogether he estimated there were more stones than all of his people combined. The grass and shrubs weren’t beaten down, and trees were growing up among the circles.