Petrosphere
Encyclopedia
In archaeology, a petrosphere is the name for any spherical man-made object of any size that is composed of stone. These mainly prehistoric artefacts may have been created and/or selected, but altered in some way to perform their specific function, including carving and painting.
Several classes of petrospheres exist, such as the stone spheres of Costa Rica
; painted pebbles
from Scotland; stone charms from Scotland; sandstone balls from such sites as Traprain Law
; the Carved Stone Balls
, which are mainly from Scotland, although they have also been found in Cumbria
and Ireland
; and carved stone shot for cannons and trebuchet
s.
Naturally formed stone balls
, such as cannonball concretions and megaspherulites, have been at times misidentified as petrospheres. For example, fringe archaeologists and advocates of prehistoric extraterrestrial visitors have repeatedly argued that the stone balls, which range in diameter from 0.61 to 3.35 meters, found around Cerro Piedras Bola in the Sierra de Ameca, between Ahualulco de Mercado and Ameca, in Jalisco, Mexico, are petrospheres. However, these natural stone balls are megaspherulites that have been released by erosion from a 20 to 30 million year old ash flow tuff, which originally enclosed them and in which they formed. The proponents of these stone balls being petrospheres base their arguments on the false claims that all of these spheres are perfectly round, they are composed of granite, and natural processes cannot produce stone balls. Similarly, cannonball concretions, i.e. those found along the Cannonball River
in North Dakota
and near Moeraki
, South Island
, New Zealand, also have been misidentified as petrospheres.
Boulders on Champ Island
Stone round shot (cannonballs)
Stone balls (spheres) of Coasta Rica
Carved stone balls of Scotland
Stone spheres of Costa Rica
The stone spheres of Costa Rica are an assortment of over three hundred petrospheres in Costa Rica, located on the Diquis Delta and on Isla del Caño. Known locally as Las Bolas, they are also called The Diquis Spheres...
; painted pebbles
Painted pebbles
Painted pebbles are a class of Pictish artifact unique to northern Scotland in the first millennium AD.- Appearance :They are small rounded beach pebbles made of quartzite, which have been painted with simple designs in a dye which is now dark brown in colour. The size varies from 18 mm by...
from Scotland; stone charms from Scotland; sandstone balls from such sites as Traprain Law
Traprain Law
Traprain Law is a hill about 221m in elevation, located east of Haddington in East Lothian, Scotland. It is the site of an oppidum or hill fort, which covered at its maximum extent about 16 ha and must have been a veritable town...
; the Carved Stone Balls
Carved Stone Balls
Carved Stone Balls are petrospheres, usually round and rarely oval. They have from 3 to 160 protruding knobs on the surface. Their size is fairly uniform, they date from the late Neolithic to possibly the Iron Age and are mainly found in Scotland...
, which are mainly from Scotland, although they have also been found in Cumbria
Cumbria
Cumbria , is a non-metropolitan county in North West England. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local authority, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. Cumbria's largest settlement and county town is Carlisle. It consists of six districts, and in...
and Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
; and carved stone shot for cannons and trebuchet
Trebuchet
A trebuchet is a siege engine that was employed in the Middle Ages. It is sometimes called a "counterweight trebuchet" or "counterpoise trebuchet" in order to distinguish it from an earlier weapon that has come to be called the "traction trebuchet", the original version with pulling men instead of...
s.
Naturally formed stone balls
Stone balls
The terms Stone balls, "stone ball", "stone spheres", and "stone sphere" have been used to designate spherical stone objects of both natural and artificial origin...
, such as cannonball concretions and megaspherulites, have been at times misidentified as petrospheres. For example, fringe archaeologists and advocates of prehistoric extraterrestrial visitors have repeatedly argued that the stone balls, which range in diameter from 0.61 to 3.35 meters, found around Cerro Piedras Bola in the Sierra de Ameca, between Ahualulco de Mercado and Ameca, in Jalisco, Mexico, are petrospheres. However, these natural stone balls are megaspherulites that have been released by erosion from a 20 to 30 million year old ash flow tuff, which originally enclosed them and in which they formed. The proponents of these stone balls being petrospheres base their arguments on the false claims that all of these spheres are perfectly round, they are composed of granite, and natural processes cannot produce stone balls. Similarly, cannonball concretions, i.e. those found along the Cannonball River
Cannonball River
The Cannonball River is a tributary of the Missouri River, approximately 135 mi long, in southwestern North Dakota in the United States....
in North Dakota
North Dakota
North Dakota is a state located in the Midwestern region of the United States of America, along the Canadian border. The state is bordered by Canada to the north, Minnesota to the east, South Dakota to the south and Montana to the west. North Dakota is the 19th-largest state by area in the U.S....
and near Moeraki
Moeraki
Moeraki is a small fishing village on the east coast of the South Island of New Zealand. It was once the location of a whaling station. In the 1870s, local interests believed it could become the main port for the north Otago area and a railway line, the Moeraki Branch, was built to the settlement...
, South Island
South Island
The South Island is the larger of the two major islands of New Zealand, the other being the more populous North Island. It is bordered to the north by Cook Strait, to the west by the Tasman Sea, to the south and east by the Pacific Ocean...
, New Zealand, also have been misidentified as petrospheres.
See also
- stone ballsStone ballsThe terms Stone balls, "stone ball", "stone spheres", and "stone sphere" have been used to designate spherical stone objects of both natural and artificial origin...
- Stone spheres of Costa RicaStone spheres of Costa RicaThe stone spheres of Costa Rica are an assortment of over three hundred petrospheres in Costa Rica, located on the Diquis Delta and on Isla del Caño. Known locally as Las Bolas, they are also called The Diquis Spheres...
- Carved Stone BallsCarved Stone BallsCarved Stone Balls are petrospheres, usually round and rarely oval. They have from 3 to 160 protruding knobs on the surface. Their size is fairly uniform, they date from the late Neolithic to possibly the Iron Age and are mainly found in Scotland...
of ScotlandScotlandScotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the... - Grave orbGrave orbGrave Orb is the name for a petrosphere that was put on the tomb of a deceased. Grave Orbs were made throughout Scandinavia from the Pre-Roman Iron Age until the Vendel era....
- LithicLithicLithic may refer to:*a stone tool*Lithic analysis*Lithic stage*Lithic core *Lithic reduction *Lithic technology *Lithic flake *Lithic fragment...
-BolasBolasBolas are a throwing weapon superficially similar to the surujin, made of weights on the ends of interconnected cords, designed to capture animals by entangling their legs... - Rai stonesRai stonesRai, or stone money, are large, circular stone disks carved out of limestone formed from aragonite and calcite crystals, Rai stones were mined in Palau and transported for use to the island of Yap, Micronesia...
- stone round shotRound shotRound shot is a solid projectile without explosive charge, fired from a cannon. As the name implies, round shot is spherical; its diameter is slightly less than the bore of the gun it is fired from.Round shot was made in early times from dressed stone, but by the 17th century, from iron...
(cannonballs) - spherical stone shot for trebuchetTrebuchetA trebuchet is a siege engine that was employed in the Middle Ages. It is sometimes called a "counterweight trebuchet" or "counterpoise trebuchet" in order to distinguish it from an earlier weapon that has come to be called the "traction trebuchet", the original version with pulling men instead of...
s - lapidaryLapidaryA lapidary is an artist or artisan who forms stone, mineral, gemstones, and other suitably durable materials into decorative items such as engraved gems, including cameos, or cabochons, and faceted designs...
spheres
Boulders on Champ Island
External links
Stone round shot (cannonballs)
- Ammunition columnAmmunition columnAn ammunition column consists of military vehicles carrying artillery and small arms ammunition for the combatant unit to which the column belongs. Thus the ammunition columns of a division, forming part of the brigades of field artillery, carry reserve ammunition for the guns, the machine guns of...
- Ruffell, W.L., 1996, The Gun - Smoothbore Era 1550-1860: Projectiles Royal New Zealand Artillery Old Comrades' Association, New Zealand.
Stone balls (spheres) of Coasta Rica
- Hoopes, J.W., 2005, The Stone Balls of Costa Rica University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas.
Carved stone balls of Scotland
- Hunterian Museum and Art Gallery, nd, Carved Stone Balls A gallery of carved stone ball photographs & information
- Marischal Virtual Museum, nd, ball, carved stone Aberdeen Museum's virtual gallery of their Carved Stone balls
- A Researcher's Guide to Local History terminology
- Carved Stone Balls of Skara Brae