Visiting America’s Stonehenge, ancient mysteries in the modern world

At first I felt very unsure about what story I wanted to tell for this assignment. I had some ideas, but nothing that I felt was really true to who I am at this moment in time. For my tarot business, I study and follow the Neopagan Wheel of the Year, and I hold classes and events for each solstice, equinox, and fire festival on the calendar. The wheel of the year is a modern take on the ancient Pagan Sabbats with four astronomical points, and four festivals.

While I was researching Beltane, coming up on May 1st, I stumbled upon some information about the Baal Stone, which was uncovered at America’s Stonehenge in Salem, NH. The stone has an inscription dedicating the site to the God “Baal of the Canaanites,” linked to the Phonecian seafaring culture who predated the Cannanites and worshipped Baal. This also has ties to the Celtic sun God Belenos.

Also uncovered at this site is the 39 day stone, which was used to mark Beltane on the ancient calendar. I was so fascinated by this discovery, that I borrowed a book on America’s Stonehenge from the library, and I read it cover to cover in one day. There is so much amazing information about this site, I knew I could never cover all of it, but I decided this was going to be my story. I related this megalithic site to my own personal experience as a modern day spiritual healer and energy worker.

The first stage was the planning, research, and a burst of curiosity and creative energy. I made plans to drive to the site, only about two hours from where I live, and my partner was happy to come along and help me take some videos. I created the introduction and the google earth example ahead of time. I wrote out a script and a list of shots I wanted to get, because I knew I would have limited time there, and off we went!

During the filming and exploring process at the site, I felt happy and excited the whole time. I wrestled with how I pictured the video in my head versus how the filming was actually going. It was very windy, and there was some construction happening (clearing trees) nearby, so I ran into some issues with audio quality. I was sure to get lots of B-roll in case the footage of me talking directly to camera was unusable. I knew I could rely on a voiceover if I had to. I did end up using a few shots that had background noise, but sometimes you can’t control everything while you are filming.

I also felt that my delivery could have been better. I felt a little self conscious about being on the camera, as most of us do. Luckily there were not too many other tourists that day.

The site itself was different than I had pictured in my mind. It’s neat to see something in reality that you had only read and watched videos about. We looped around the site two times in order for me to find everything I was looking for. The staff there created an audio walking tour app that I downloaded on my phone, and it was packed with information! Though it was a bit tricky to keep switching from the app to thecamera on the same device (my phone).

The editing process was fast and furious! I was excited to pull it together and very happy with the final project, even if it wasn’t as I pictured originally. I wish I had filmed even more video than I had, but I also felt like having more options might have made it harder to make decisions while editing.

There are more cool thing about this place that I did not mention in my short story. I actually finished a first cut and then went back to add in a bit more. If you want to learn more about America’s Stonehenge, I highly recommend visiting their website and watching the introduction video! The History Channel also did an episode about the site on the series America Unearthed.

Resources

Goudsward, David, and Robert E. Stone. America’s Stonehenge: the Mystery Hill Story, from Ice Age to Stone Age. Branden Books, 2003.

Grimassi, Raven. Beltane: Springtime Rituals, Lore & Celebration. Llewellyn Publications, 2001.

“What Is America’s Stonehenge?” America’s Stonehenge: Home, www.stonehengeusa.com/.

Wolter, Scott. “America Unearthed: Stonehenge in New Hampshire.” America Unearthed, season 1, episode 6, The History Channel.