G33 Sailors of Stonehenge; The Celestial & Atlantic Origin of Civilization
Author: Manuel Vega
Publisher: Independent not available
Publishing Date: 2012
ISBN: 9781479169238
Summary:
Could the legend of Atlantis be far simpler than we thought? By means of a novel and simple interpretation grounded in the stars, Manuel Vega presents a compelling case to answer this question positively.
In Sailors of Stonehenge, Vega cruises the prehistoric times to solve the mystifying puzzle of the origin of Civilization, by smoothly assembling the archaelogical data related to the most impressive stone monuments like Stonehenge with teh classical myths like Jason and the Argonauts.
Sailors of Stonehenge contains more than a hundred images and figures.
Other works:
From what I can see on the goodreads page, the author doesn't have any other works and this appears to be his first novel.
Background of author:
(from goodreads.com)
url
http://www.goodreads.com/Manuel_Vega
gender
male
website
http://circleofmeditation.wordpress.com/
member since
September 2012
About this author:
MANUEL VEGA, Ph.D., was formerly a researcher working for the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (USA), the University of Nagoya (Japan) and the Council of Scientific Research in Oviedo (Spain). He was also a Buddhist monk for five years in monasteries of California and Canada. He has co-authored many papers and patents, has written extensively about the interface of science and spirituality, and has been the recipient of several literary awards in Spanish.
Theme:
"This book is based on the assumption that much of the knowledge of the Megalith Builders' culture may not be properly represented in the archaeological record, but it may have survived and reached us encapsulated in myths, as well as in all kinds of cultural, political and religious manifestations of modern society. We could say that this book is going to interpret the results of a very special archaeological excavation, one that does not dig in the soil but in the prehistoric stratum where the memories of our megalithic ancestors remain stored: in our collective unconscious." (4)
Problem addressed:
What do the Megaliths have in common and why were they built? What does the legend of Atlantis and the Greek myths have in common with one another?
Summary of the content:
The book begins with lots of information about the stars, the areas of the Megaliths as well as brief tales of the possibility of what the Megaliths were used for. I had no idea that they were located in different areas too. I always heard about the Stonehenge but never about Orkney or whatnot. (Interesting idea is of King Arthur Orkney and the Megaliths there...) I have to be honest that the first half with constellations, stars and whatnot I was really lost. In second half, however, the concepts, theories and whatnot were very intriguing as well as novel and enjoyable.
Thesis:
"In conclusion, this book sheds new light on the megalithic phenomenon going into detail about the timeline, design and purpose of its greatest surviving architectural manifestations, revealing a society much more organized, interconnected, mobile, advanced, and, overall, influential in western civilization than currently regarded." (143)
Main points of book:
What do stars, megaliths, Greek myths and Atlantis have in common? Read and find out.
Why its interesting and informative:
The theories and ideas of the book are interesting and its not something I have ever encountered in my life. Although I'm not an astrologer and whatnot, I admired the research that the author has done when it came to the stars as well as the huge role they have played in beginning of the civilization. Very often historic people get lumped into the "idiot" category, but from reading this, I was amazed at the imagination and what one could find out from the stars.
Support thesis:
The book does support thesis because it does have an unusual subject, that of Megaliths, Greek Myths and Atlantis legend as well as astronomy. It mentions the possibilities and reasons why the megaliths were built all over the place and so on.
Time period/subject it deals:
It deals in prehistoric period with a brief Greek myth, Atlantis and Megalith building as well as the influence of stars.
Table of contents:
1. Introduction
2. Carnac
3. Avebury
4. Stonehenge
5. Orkney Islands
6. Newgrange
7. Jason and the Argonauts
8. Almendres
9. The Iberian Zodiac
10. The Greatest Celestial Warrior
11. The Archangel Orion
12. Atlantis
Maps/illustrations/charts:
In the book there are plenty of pictures as well as maps, and how the constellations looked like so its not likely that someone who's familiar with astronomy or anything the author discusses will be lost.
Issues book raises:
Where do Megaliths come from as well as the origin of Atlantis. Mystery seemed to enfold the stories of Atlantis as well as the Megaliths. People came up with various theories about the Stonehenge, but of other Megaliths, I have never heard of. The author draws connections and explanations as to why they are where they are, and that is to be accurate with the stars. He also briefly gives glances at the theories of what the people of the Megaliths must have been like.
Book ideas vs larger ideas:
I can imagine that this book can give light to the theory that megaliths are based on stars as well as the theory of whom the Atlantians are, which perhaps can cause other theories to fall into disuse.
Agree/disagree:
While I find the author's theories to be fascinating, I have to admit that astronomy and stars and whatnot seemed beyond my reach of understanding. I do think the author has very compelling ideas about the origins of western civilization.
Sources:
The author seemed to understand that not everyone is an astronomy person, thus he put pictures of constellations as well as the Megaliths and maps in the book to help the person understand what he is talking. I wish that the pictures and sources could have helped me out, but they didn't, although I imagine that for others, they will be of great help. There are some sources he gives, but not a lot.
Conclusion:
I would recommend that people read this book and stick with reading it, even if a lot flies over their heads. I also think that this book requires numerous re-readings to perhaps discover other secrets that are hidden at the first glance. The parts that I did enjoy were the Jason and the Argonauts as well as the Atlantis and also tidbits about how the Megalithic people were like.
Quick notes: I entered into the giveaway originally but didn't win. Few weeks later the author contacted me and asked me if I wanted a free copy of the book. He asked me to review/rate it. I agreed. I am not being reimbursed or paid for giving it a four star rating. I gave it four stars because I liked the book.
4 out of 5
(0: Stay away unless a masochist 1: Good for insomnia 2: Horrible but readable; 3: Readable and quickly forgettable, 4: Good, enjoyable 5: Buy it, keep it and never let it go.)
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