9780875863498 / 0875863493

From the Stone Age to today, humans have erected stones, shaped stones, and attributed special powers to stones large and small. Gary Varner presents a sweeping historical and cultural overview of the symbolic significance of stones over the ages in an excellent reference for anyone interested in folklore, history, and the development of religion.

Why are some rocks simply tossed out of the way while others, regardless of their size, are held as sacred, mysterious and imbued with power?

Humans since the dawn of civilization have used stone to represent the holy, both by fashioning sacred symbols for themselves and by granting recognition to certain sites occurring naturally.

Varner shares his love of nature lore, oral traditions, folklore and ancient religious structures that are still so abundant in the world, and offers insights on the history and the technology of these artifacts, while touching on the importance of preserving a sense of reverence in today s world.
This study examines the universal appeal of sites from the Dome of the Rock and Stonehenge to sites sacred to the Inuit and the Cherokees, from the Middle East to the American Midwest and the English Midlands.

Little do the keepers of worry stones today realize that they are practicing one of the ancient traditions of transferring their problems to an inanimate object. This volume looks at customs and traditions from around the world, from the curious to the profound, related to stones large and small, from prehistory to today.

Illustrations, bibliography.