Review of Megalithomania 2008 by Maia of Sheldon

Click here to buy DVDs from 2008 or download MPs and video of the talks. MEGALITHOMANIA 2008 got some marvellous reviews. Below is ony by Maia of Shaldon, who submitted this review to www.megalithic.co.uk:

Back home, reeling again – not with the pint of Hobgoblin I have just consumed with my supper - but with pleasure from another amazing weekend with Megalithomaniacs.2008. This year I attended the conference, and the two Tours to local sites.

Well done Hugh and crew, this well attended conference in Glastonbury met entirely my high expectations, and it was evident that many others thought so too. Someone said at the intro that this conference was not from the academy – but I was struck by the rigour of the research, the professionalism of the presentations, and the genuine support and respect all the speakers showed each other. Most showed this by being there in the audience to hear each other's revelations. And things were truly revealed.

Pyramids in Bosnia? I nearly went shopping – but am I so glad I stayed! These massive structures need the entire world's attention, and Sam Osmanagich from Sarajevo deserves all the help we can offer him in his mighty task. I had heard a whisper about them in the Fortean Times, but I had not taken it seriously. Just 'google' for it, and you will see what we have seen; the largest man-made structures in the world. Equally enthralling and totally unknown to many of us were the Basalt Islands in the west pacific. I reckon myself to be quite informed on the world's wonders, but these lectures left me mouthing quietly to myself, "how could I have missed knowing about these fantastic megaliths?"

Now I have to go to Bosnia, after I have been to the Basalt Islands, and Kate Masters showed me parts of France I have missed. David Furlong persuaded me to look again at counties nearer to home, and Nick Mann made me want to rush out and go up Windmill Hill just to feel his excitement from his personal discovery of the use of the Tor. Mind you, I'd have missed Sam from Sarajevo then.

We saw crystal skulls, and heard their stories. We were drawn into the web of local, national and international alignments, culminating with cosmic alignments of old, new and a hint of what is to come. I have a great personal interest in this area, and we were not disappointed. We heard about new discoveries from Michael Bott and Peter Marshall, who demonstrated to us the importance of travelling for comparison purposes. And then there was Tom Graves and Hamish Miller – two men with the ability to be like overlords. I did not know whether to laugh or cry. They gave me confidence that my own work is valuable to the larger picture.

The trips to Stanton Drew, Stoney Littleton, Stonehenge and Avebury were friendly and informative. I know these sites well, but it is so much nicer to be in the company of like minds. The joy of being in the Henge in the blue of the morning sunny skies was heavenly, as was Frida singing for us. I had to leave, but only after Frida and I had laid a dead crow to rest in the roots of a tree at Avebury. A surreal end to a stunning weekend.

So many people are working very hard to recover old knowledge, and Hugh and his team know who they are, and have brought them to us. Just look at that line-up. What will they do next year? I am certainly going to be there to find out ….. after Bosnia, Peru, Mayenne, Malta…….

Maia of SHALDON