Megalithic monuments are traditionally associated with solar alignments, as is the case with Stonehenge, or they are attributed the function of astronomical observatory, as is the case of the passage tombs that we reviewed here a year ago.
Archaeologists working in the area of Hendraburnick Down in Cornwall, southwest England, point to another possible nocturnal function for this type of monument, perhaps the scene of some kind of ceremony performed in the light of the moon.
They are based on the discovery of numerous marks made on megalithic stones, which are not visible in sunlight but are visible at sunset and during moonlit nights.
In his article, published in the archeology magazine Time and Mind , expose as the analysis of the quoit or megalithic dolmen of Hendraburnick revealed the existence of up to 105 marks that until now had gone unnoticed, and suggest that they were made precisely to be seen in the dark. In fact, his discovery was made using a flash camera at night.
The quoit of Hendraburnick is a controversial megalithic monument. Although it has visible decoration on its upper part, there are experts who believe that it is still of natural origin, although it would have served as a burial place. Others believe it to be a dolmen whose 16-ton top eventually fell but was once supported by two standing stones, dating back to the early Bronze Age, around 2,500 BC.
Precisely the original intention of the researchers, who began the excavations and analysis in 2013, was to determine if the monument was megalithic or natural. Not only did they find that it was indeed human work, but that the place seems to have been the center of a nocturnal activity from which they have found numerous fragments of different artifacts.
The quoit Hendraburnick is situated near the town that gives it its name, and next to the sources of the Camel River. And also the new marks found make it the most decorated and complex megalith in all of southern England.
The archaeologists also found multitudes of quartz shards that were deliberately scattered around the monument so that they could glow in the moonlight or from campfires, creating an impressive luminescent effect while revealing hidden markings in daylight. ., creating a kind of aura around the quoit .
According to Andy Jones and Thomas Goskar, members of the Cornwall Archaeological Unit and authors of the study, the marks discovered show that the site was used at night, and probably other megalithic sites would have been as well .