May 1 Beltane Sunrise and October 31 Samhain Sunset at Mounds State Park, Anderson, Indiana
The north henge at Mounds State Park will be the third earthwork in the Ohio Valley to be aligned with the May 1 Beltane sunrise and the October 31 Samhain sunset.
In the history of Madison County, Indiana, the north henge (Circle Mound) orientation was measured at 67 degrees North. Their map of the earthwork clearly shows that it is not on an east-west axis. Why are the docent archaeologists at Mounds Staye Park claiming that the gateway is aligned to the equinox sunrise?
History of Madison County, Indiana, 1880
“On the same section of land, but a half mile farther up the river, and on the same side of the stream, there is another cluster of earthworks that are of nearly equal interest; in fact, the principal work A, on plate K, is, in some respects, more remarkable than the large circle on plate E. The outline is of irregular shape-constricted on one end and at the sides; at the other end there is a gateway (D) 9 feet wide, protected by two small mounds (B) and (C), now about 4 feet high. The wall is 30 to 35 feet wide at the base, and about 4 feet high; ditch 8 feet wide. A central line through the longer way is north 67 degrees east and 296 feet long; it is 160 feet across at the widest and 150 feet across at the narrowest part--near the middle. With the exception of the two mounds at the gateway, which lie on the cultivated side of a section fence, and have been cut down by the plow, the remainder antiquity is in as good state of preservation as when deserted by its original occupants. Large trees are growing over it, and the underbrush is so thick that it was difficult to obtain accurate measurements; in fact, there is hardly a stick of timber amiss over the ruins.”
Wow, the DNR archaeologists claimed an equinox sunrise alignment at the henge. Why are there no photos? I read from a university archaeological department that this henge and gateway were aligned with the equinox sunrise. I had dismissed this work as a possibility for aligning with the May 1 - October 31 sunrise and sunset. After finding a website that gave the angle of the sunrises and sunsets, the old histories of these measurements could be deciphered. The people working for the DNR at Mounds State Park are nice and very knowledgeable on the grounds. They got some bad intel from our experts at one of the universities.
On May 1, at Mounds State Park the sun will rise at 69 degrees N.; it will be at 68 degrees by the 3rd and 67 degrees by May 6. Earth wobble over two thousand years accounts for the discrepancy. When I photographed the May 1 sunrise at an Ohio Henge the sun rose visibly on the gateway. The actual alignment was May 5, so few days discrepancy is accurate. It will" appear" perfectly aligned on May 1; then, on October 31, you can stand outside the gateway looking west, and the sun will set in the gateway once flanked by two mounds. The place to be on Halloween dusk!!!
In the History of Madison County, Indiana the earthwork was aligned to 67 degrees north.
According to timeanddate.com (graph above) the earthwork's eastern gateway will align to the Beltane sunrise.
On October 31 the sun will set in the west and align with the henge's eastern gateway.
