A prospect of Silbury hill from the spring head of the Kennet River. 13. May. 1724.
Whence Orpheus: “Thou who holdest the scepter of the pole, venerable on many accounts, the throne of the world in the north.”
Psellus says, “the Pandochean power of the world reigns in the north.”
Hence Plutarch writes, “That Xenophon says of the Egyptians, they thought that part where the sun rises was the face of the world; the north was its right-hand, where the Nile rises its left.” And this helps us to explain several Egyptian antiquities.
But to apply this to our purpose. We cannot but observe, that the whole of Abury temple, or Mausoleum, regarded as a picture, has its upper part to the north, and its face (if we may so speak) toward the east. Thitherward the serpent goes. That way the cove of the northern temple opens; that way the cove of Bekamton avenue; that way the face of Stonehenge temple looks. So that the Druids appear to have the same notions with the other wise men of the oriental ancients.
This therefore shews the reason why they set their temples fronting the east, in all antiquity, and why the coves of our works look that way. As to the two temples at Abury, the northern and southern, included in the great circle, it should seem that the northern one had the preeminence, and was the more sacred of the two. As the cove was the adytum of that temple, so the whole northern temple may be esteem’d as the adytum of the whole work, the southern being as the body of it. Solomon’s temple, we know, consisted of three parts: the adytum, or holy of holies; the holy place, or sanctuary; the porch. By this means there is a conformity between it and Abury; and to Stonehenge likewise, which has an elliptic adytum, a circular or outer part, and the area. Doubtless the different order of priests, and of religious offices, took up these different parts. And, if we may give our opinion, ’tis natural to think, that because the ring-stone is by the southern temple, there the sacrifices were offer’d and administer’d by the lesser orders of priests, around the ambre or central pyramidal. The highest part of religion was to be perform’d by the archdruid and the upper order of priests before the magnificent cove of the northern temple, together with hymns, incense, musick, and the like.
5. In my account of Stonehenge I suggested a surmise, that the Druids, in laying down these works of theirs, used a compass or magnetic instrument; whence I founded a conjecture concerning the time of building that temple, by observing the variation with a theodolite. As the variation in all the works about Stonehenge is between six and seven degrees to the east of the north, I found it at Abury to be about ten degrees the same way, and as precisely as possible. This will necessarily excite one’s attention, as there is less reason to suppose ’tis accidental. The whole work was manifestly design’d to be set on the cardinal points of the heavens, but they all vary one way, exactly the same quantity; and ’tis impossible to account for it in any wise, but that they us’d a magnetic instrument. This is the reason that the neck of the snake on Overton-hill crosses the Roman road running east and west, which would otherwise have been the ground-line of this work.
Thus Kennet avenue enters the town of Abury ten degrees north of the north-west point, which north-west point was the Druids’ purpose. The neck of the snake going down from Overton-hill regards Silbury precisely, and their intent was that it should be full west, but ’tis ten degrees north of the west. The meridian line of the whole work passes from Silbury-hill to the center of the temple at Abury, this varies ten degrees to the east from the north-point. The stupendous cove in the northern temple opens ten degrees east of north-east. It was their purpose that it should regard the north-east. The diameter of the great circle of the great stones at Abury, on which the north and south temples are built, was design’d to have been set on the line from north-west to south-east, but it verges ten degrees northward; and so of all other particulars. And by this very means we may, at any time, point out the line of the termination of Bekamton avenue, tho’ entirely destroy’d. For from Silbury-hill, it was design’d by the Druids to have been set full west, as Overton-hill full east. Therefore a line mark’d from Silbury-hill, ten degrees north of the west point, and at the proper length of the avenue, being 4000 cubits, an eastern mile, determines the spot where Bekamton avenue ended. That spot is south of the square inclosure going up to Cheril-hill, where Silbury-hill bears ten degrees south of east, where Abury steeple bears twenty-five degrees west of south-west. From [Silbury-hill] you mark it by the line that goes to Oldbury camp, on the left hand of Cheril-hill. In that line was the termination of Bekamton avenue; it being the intention of the Druids to place the founder’s tumulus or mausoleum of Silbury-hill in the middle, between the two ends of the avenue, the head and tail of the snake, upon the east and west line, and exactly south of the center of the great circle at Abury. This whole work therefore was properly the mausoleum, or made, as it were, one tumulus over the founder. A prophylactic form’d by the great symbol of the deity, guarded the ashes of the deceased hero. And from this custom in mythologic times, they invented the notion of a snake being the genius of departed heroes; or of such being turn’d into snakes and the like, as is said of Cadmus, and many more.
Thus Virgil describing Æneas celebrating the anniversary of his father’s death, at his tumulus in Sicily, recites the ancient rites practis’d at these places and on these occasions, and introduces a snake creeping out of the adytum of the tumulus, passing by the altars and holy utensils, and retiring again, in Æneid V.
——Adytis cùm lubricus anguis ab imis