Stonehenge builders used Pythagoras' theorem 2,000 years before Greek philosopher was born, experts

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/ ^ | 6/20/18 | Sarah Knapton

[BBell]

Stonehenge builders used Pythagoras' theorem 2,000 years before Greek philosopher was born, say experts

The builders of Britain’s ancient stone circles like Stonehenge were using Pythagoras' theorem 2,000 years before the Greek philosopher was born, experts have claimed.

A new book, Megalith, has re-examined the ancient geometry of Neolithic monuments and concluded they were constructed by sophisticated astronomers who understood lengthy lunar, solar and eclipse cycles and built huge stone calendars using complex geometry

One contributor, megalithic expert Robin Heath has even proposed that there exists a great Pythagorean triangle in the British landscape linking Stonehenge, the site from which the Preseli bluestones were cut in Wales, and Lundy Island, an important prehistoric site.

Pythagoras’ discovery that the sum of the areas of two squares on the sides of two triangle will add up to the area of a square on hypotenuse has been used been used for millennia to help builders attain perfect right-angles.

The new book, published today to coincide with today’s summer solstice, shows how within one of Stonehenge’s earliest incarnations, dating from 2750BC, there lies a rectangle of four Sarsen stones which when split in half diagonally forms a perfect Pythagorean 5:12:13 triangle.

The eight lines which radiate from the rectangle and triangles also perfectly align to important dates in the Neolithic calendar, such as the summer and winter solstices and spring and autumn equinoxes.

They also mark Imbolc, the ancient date for the beginning of Spring on February 1, Beltane, or May Day, lammas, the start of the wheat harvest and Samhain, October 31 which traditionally marked the time when cattle were brought down from summer pastures and slaughtered for the winter which has become Halloween.

Contributor and editor John Matineau, said: “People often think of our ancestors as rough cavemen but they were also sophisticated astronomers.

[trebb]

Or......they just used wood or other materials and kept tweaking them over a period of years until they had it right and then used stone to make it permanent....unless they show us the plans that use the theorem, I’ll guess that they didn’t have the advanced math....

[editor-surveyor]

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They would have to do it quickly!

It keeps on changing.

What is there represents a specific point in time.

[piasa]

Halloween / All Hallow’s Eve, the day before All Saint’s Day, predates Samhain (which is known about because some Christian recorded it). Also, the date of Samhain varies according to the lunar cycle so it is not necessarily Oct 31.