He proposed the existence of a network of completely straight roads that cut through a range of prehistoric, Roman, and medieval structures.

Looking back on the book's reception in 2000, Williamson noted that "archaeologists weren't particularly interested, and ley-line people were hostile".A study by David George Kendall used the techniques of shape analysis to examine the triangles formed by standing stones to deduce if these were often arranged in straight lines. Looking north west from the crossroads towards Croft Ambrey hill fort, he noticed a striking alignment of historic and prehistoric features that ran, via a short stretch of old lane and over various hilltops, to the spot where he stood and then beyond to Risbury Camp and an archaeological dig unearthing Roman remains. Independently of Watkins' ideas, a similar notion—that of Heilige Linien ('holy lines')—was raised in 1920s Germany.

Michell's publications were accompanied by the launch of the Ley Hunter magazine and the appearance of a ley hunter community keen to identify ley lines across the British landscape. This revised and updated edition of the book by Danny Sullivan is the classic, comprehensive guide to the subject.The very least you will do having read this book (and hopefully the Old Straight Track) is to get out for more walks and to notice more in the landscape. Hutton suggested that some of the enthusiasm formerly directed toward leys was instead directed toward archaeo-astronomy.

Both these hills appear to have been artificially shaped so that their axes align with each other, and their orientation, 27 degrees North-East can be read off a large Ordnance Survey sheet.

The problem is, many books on this subject are overwhelmed with new age gibberish, UFOs and other similar topics. The idea of "leys" as paths traversing the British landscape was developed by Alfred Watkins, a wealthy businessman and antiquarian who lived in Hereford. This book allows the reader to examine what they believe about ley lines (or not) and to clear out all the distracting tribal noise before reading Watkins' more comprehensive work on the subject. Attitudes to the archaeological establishment varied among ley hunters, with some of the latter wanting to convert archaeologists to their beliefs and others believing that that was an impossible task. Many attempts have been made to understand and explain the extraordinary phenomenon of dead straight lines of prehistoric monuments, such as stone circles and standing stones, ancient and forgotten churches, wind-swept hill tops and stretches of antique trackways.

Although often hostile to archaeologists, some ley hunters attempted to ascertain scientific evidence for their belief in earth energies at prehistoric sites, evidence they could not obtain.

Danny Sullivan's Ley Lines does this with reference to all the theories that have ever been put forward to explain the archaic landscape line. Watkins never attributed any supernatural significance to leys; he believed that they were simply pathways that had been used for trade or ceremonial purposes, very ancient in origin, possibly dating back to the Neolithic, certainly pre-Roman. Photography, the Index, and the Nonexistent: Alfred Watkins' Discovery (or Invention) of the Notorious Ley-lines of British Archaeology". Continuing belief [ edit ] Modern Pagans in Britain often believe in ley lines running through ancient sites, such as the Coldrum Long Barrow in Kent.