BOOK REVIEW:
Sarum is a sweeping epic that tells the tales of the five families whose lives are intertwined throughout history:
The Porters – the descendants of a proud Roman called “Porteus”.
The Masons – the devoted stone-craftsmen who were involved in the building of Stonehenge and Salisbury Cathedral.
The Godfreys – the noble descendants of the Norman family of “de Godefrois”.
The Wilsons – the gutter-fighters who rise from medieval serfdom to local lordship.
The Shockleys – honest, hardworking farmers whose family feud with the Wilsons lasts for generations.
Their bloodlines run back to as far as the pre-historic times when a nomadic hunter leads his family south from what is now northern England at the onset of Ice Age in search of better hunting, and settles in the area, carefully avoiding conflict with the local hunting bands. He becomes one of their ancestors.
The history of Salisbury (Sarum is the ancient name for this area) – stretching from prehistoric times up to the present day, for a span of over ten millennia – is marvelously orchestrated through countless events, including the construction of both Stonehenge and Salisbury Cathedral. The bloody history of England is splattered across the pages of this book – from the barbaric invasions of the Romans and Normans to the tragedy of the deadly "Black Death". The book features generations of the same families who share the same traits – Wilsons are always deceitful and shrewd; Masons are always short, fat and bald. It shows how their actions shape history and consequently, how history also affects their lives.
This is a masterpiece skillfully crafted by the master story-teller.
Edward Rutherfurd hypnotizes his readers with his historical accuracy and vivid imagination. His research with England’s history is astounding and groundbreaking in its precision.
This book is not be picked up lightly ... per se, it has 1400 pages, and it is a long narrative saga of British rich, tumultuous history.
The Stonehenge
(The below information about Stonehenge is from Wikipedia)
Stonehenge is a prehistoric monument located in the English county of Wiltshire, about 2.0 miles (3.2 km) west of Amesbury and 8 miles (13 km) north of Salisbury. One of the most famous sites in the world, Stonehenge is composed of earthworks surrounding a circular setting of large standing stones. It is at the centre of the most dense complex of Neolithic and Bronze Age monuments in England, including several hundred burial mounds.
Archaeologists have believed that the iconic stone monument was erected around 2500 BC, as described in the chronology below. Radiocarbon dating in 2008, however, has suggested that the first stones were not erected until 2400–2200 BC whilst another theory suggests that bluestones may have been erected at the site as early as 3000 BC.
Stonehenge was produced by a culture that left no written records. Many aspects of Stonehenge remain subject to debate. This multiplicity of theories, some of them very colourful, are often called the "mystery of Stonehenge"
There is little or no direct evidence for the construction techniques used by the Stonehenge builders. Over the years, various authors have suggested that supernatural or anachronistic methods were used, usually asserting that the stones were impossible to move otherwise. However, conventional techniques using Neolithic technology have been demonstrably effective at moving and placing stones of a similar size. Proposed functions for the site include usage as an astronomical observatory, or as a religious site.
