Megalithic Yard

The Megalithic Yard is a unit that has been postulated by the Scottish engineer Alexander Thom. According to this measure, many megaliths and stone circles to have been created. A Megalithic Yard (MY) corresponds to 82.9 cm.

The Megalithic Yard (MY ) was developed by Alexander Thom 1955, due to the measurements of English and Scottish stone circles ( Ring of Brodgar ). Starting from an initial 46 Neolithic stone circles, he later finally procured around 300 stone circles in his studies. When he composed the test results, he noticed that the diameter arranged in groups that are close at 22 ft (6.7 m) and 44 ft ( 13.4 m) were, while some 55 ft ( 16.8 m) reached. The mathematical investigation by Thom (using methods of RS Broadbent 1955 ) gave a best value of the black spots at 5.43 ft according to 1654 mm. There was a remarkably low standard deviation of 0.110 %. Thom halved this value to reach the diameter of the radius, it was 828.51 mm 2.72 ft accordingly.

Because this value is close to the "imperial yard " (3 ft = 914.4 mm), he called his Megalithic Yard, but stressed at the same time that he had never met with his measurements on a three the MY, but evidence of have a quartering. The neighborhood of MY seems to be the true base unit.

First, the data obtained from the British biostatistician and Statisticians SR Broadbent edited on Thom's suggestions out of Thoms was confirmed numerical results. Finally, it was one of his time 's most famous English statistician David George Kendall, be won to investigate these research results on a statistical basis. In addition, he gave a well-received lecture before the Royal Society, London, which was subsequently published .. He found the so-called megalithic " fathom " of 5.43 ft (equivalent to 1,654 m, ie twice MY) at a significance level of 1 % confirmed.

The MY was detected in the subsequent period at various locations in continental Europe, so with the megalithic stone circles on the Tuchel Heath ( at Odry ( Czersk ) ) in former West Prussia ( Rolf Müller). House plans a Linear Pottery Culture settlement at Erkelenz - Kückhoven ( Krs Heinberg ) also point to the MY. This settlement is dated both by the radiocarbon method and by dendrochronology to around 5000 years BC. Surveys of the couple Vera and Georg Leisner of megalithic tombs in Spain have also found the MY. After Alexander Thom, the Megalithic Elle has held in the form of unit Vara (mean about using in Madrid, Burgos, Mexico, Texas, Peru 0.84 m) in Spain until well into the early modern period.

The Nippur cubit, from the proven both eg the Egyptian king Selle, and the Roman foot are derived, is for MY in the ratio 16:10.

But the fact remains, for the construction of megalithic sites that you did not need a unit. Yet less found himself a measuring scale in the form of clear marks on a stone or hewn stone, which may have served for the calibration of standards in construction or for acquisition of moderation. When building with uneven stones, there are only arbitrary points of comparison for distances and the like. The views Thoms have therefore never accepted by archaeologists in continental Europe and in Britain.