Singing Goddess Faces The Light (Stone 35a, West Kennet Avenue - December 2016)      

 

This carving represents one of three stunning female faces on this monolith click here for details
 

Important Note - my image here and the notes below were my own independently derived work made/written before I purchased Di Pattison's "Avebury Stones" book in September 2020.   I expressly acknowledge Di Pattison got here first (her book was published in 2013) and although my own comments on how this face were made are somewhat different to hers I acknowledge her primacy on this point. I am intrigued that we both independently believed the statue to be singing! I respectfully suggest that my photo and notes on this webpage be seen as subsequent and independent corroboration of Di Pattison's work in relation to this carving.

This singing Goddess has a hidden and previously unknown sister (also singing) that I discovered - click here to view her

My Own Explanatory Materials Concerning The Image Displayed On This Webpage Appear Below - Please Scroll Down To View




 

(Cf Meaden "Secrets" book, p94.   He tells us that the left-hand head looks approximately to the midwinter sunset.   Was the right-hand head therefore intended to look towards the summer solstice sunrise, perhaps open mouthed singing to the sun?)


Some archaeologists deny that the stones of Avebury incorporate sculpture.   I believe this photograph shows they are wrong:

A This is the original outer surface of the sarsen boulder

B Here is the roughly hacked transitional area where the sculptor grossly cut into the stone to get to the deeper face layer, or this area could represent long hair tumbling down from below the Goddess' cap, framing her face and neck.

C This eye area was made by careful top-to-bottom scooping with a hard stone. You can see the vertical grooves this technique left behind. The large, blank area of the eye could suggest that this Goddess was blind?   If so did this mean she had the power of prophecy?

D The cheek area is carved from very careful “pecks” using a hard stone resulting in a very smooth but subtly dimpled surface. The moulding here has been masterfully done, with a lovely smooth transition.

E The open mouth appears to have been a natural feature of the sarsen, and its appearance may well have suggested to the sculptor that the goddess could be carved on this face of the rock

Please Note:

i) There is a clearer photograph of this face here.

ii) There are other faces on this east facing side of 35a, please click here for details - scroll down the page that opens.

Image copyright David Baldwin Night Photography