Beeche Stone - the celestial map

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The full image of the star sky on a paper and furthermore on a stone, a task rather difficult even for the modern person familiar with astronomy, knowing an arrangement of constellations and able to draw. The basic difficulty here that the image of heavenly sphere on a plane is impossible without serious distortions. Any projection constructed duly mathematical will differ considerably from a picture which the human eye sees in the sky. It is easy to represent together 2-3 constellations so that they have been easily recognized in the sky. It is convenient to use the star atlas which consists of separate mapsprovided that the observer already is able to find the next constellations. But even on modern mapson which the sky of northern hemisphere is shown entirely, to the unprepared person to find something unfamiliar in the night sky it is practically impossible, distortions mathematical an exact projection to a flat sheet are so strong.

The main difficulty of creation of the evident image that on a small site of a flat surface it is necessary to show an internal surface of a huge sphere, that is not only that you see directly ahead of yourself, but also that at you on the right, at the left and behind a back. The similar task faces to the artist, representing an interior of small kitchen. Who drew interiors of small rooms, perfectly knows, that the most convincing and evident for perception in this case often is the figure made by a skilled hand and like by rules of prospect, but actually constructed any way enough - in separate parts of figure these rules are observed, in others are not present. Exact constructions in this case cause much more doubts, that all is drawn correctly because of the distortions similar with stated above - the corner of the review appears is very great.
In addition complicates a picture that at any moment the part of constellations of a similar map is hidden behind horizon (but on a map they should be shown all!).

HOLLOW MAP ON THE BEECHE STONE	BEECHE STONE MAPS DECODING	The CELESTIAL MAP MODERN The same site of the sky is allocated

Here near to a modern map of the star sky orthogonal reconstruction of photos of the stone, executed by means of computer program ARCHICAD (except for placed on a site, other photos were used also) is presented. As a basis of orientation and scale the building level in length of 300 mm on a surface of the stone, focused on a magnetic compass in meridional a direction served. By the way to tell, the surface of a stone at the moment of its inspection was not horizontal, and had an appreciable bias to the north.

THE CONCLUSION

Interpretation of an arrangement offered by me hollows on a Beeche stone as celestial map as a whole is represented to quite proved and corresponding real modern maps. On its separate sites different interpretations are possible, and it is inevitable, because figure does not give in to strict mathematical check.

As a drawing by eye map the Beeche stone is exact enough, though without helps on this map hardly was possible to be guided. If on the Zodiac belt represented on it, on a regular basis to mark by means of small stones position of the Sun, the Moon and planets then the stone will be the elementary astronomical monthly journal. If it to add in the neighbourhood still with any similar stone devices as a whole quite serious astronomical complex could turn out. At least, the review of horizon on this place fine (as far as possible in mountain district), weather for supervision remarkable, district exclusively beautiful.

2007