Neolithic 'magic crystals' found in England

According to archaeologists, hundreds of fragments of a rare transparent type of quartz known as "rock crystal"

suggest that Neolithic people used this mineral to decorate graves and other structures at a ceremonial site in the West of England.

Fragments of quartz. Photo: Nick Overton

The rock crystals probably originated at the site of discovery from a source that is more than 130 km away in hilly terrain.The crystals were apparently broken into much smaller pieces. People ascribed magical properties to quartz.

Fragments of quartz. Photo: Nick Overton

The fact is that rock crystals of quartz emit flashes of light when struck.If you break them down, it can look "very exciting".In addition, the material is quite rare and quite characteristic of that period.In the Neolithic era, there was no glass or other hard, transparent material.

Excavation site. Photo: Julian Thomas

In total, archaeologists have discovered more than 300 fragmentsquartz crystals at a 6,000-year-old ceremonial site at Dorston Hill in western England. About 1 mile south of the monument known as Arthur's Stone. They are not only transparent; some crystal fragments are distinguished by their prismatic shape, which splits white light into a visible rainbow spectrum.

Read more:

The United States designed a fusion reactor. It can heat up to a billion degrees

Record coronal mass ejection at Betelgeuse is 400 billion times larger than the sun

In Australia, created a laboratory that will revive the marsupial wolf