Journal of Geomancy vol. 2 no. 1, October 1977
The Proceedings of the 1977 Geomancy Symposium were included in the Journal of Geomancy, vol. 2, no. 1, with their own page numbers, PR1 to PR10. In the original Journal, page numbers PR8 and PR9 were transposed, a slip which has been corrected here. The title page was done as artwork drawn on the stencil.
{Title page, unnumbered}
{PR1}
The First Cambridge Geomancy Symposium was held at St. Andrew’s Street Hall, Cambridge, on July 9th 1977. About fifty people, including visitors from the United States, Belgium and West Germany, were present to hear talks on various aspects of geomancy. The meeting concentrated especially upon the topic of terrestrial zodiacs, and most of the major researchers into the subject were present. All Institute of Geomantic Research publications were on sale, along with many others produced by members. Philip Heselton produced a booklet on the Holderness Zodiac especially for the Symposium (available by post from I.G.R. at 35p), and Jonathan How put on an exhibit on the Chiltern Hills Zodiac. Works on the Chiltern, Holderness, Glastonbury, Nuthampstead, Lamanche and Pendle zodiacs were available for the first time ever in one place.
The day’s proceedings commenced with a short introduction by Nigel Pennick who introduced the first speaker, Donald Cyr, editor of the American journal Stonehenge Viewpoint. Donald spoke on his work on a possible Irish Zodiac, which he has been investigating from the approach of Isaac N. Vail’s canopy theory. Relevant literature was distributed to all present, including comparative maps of the Virgo on the 52nd parallel in Ireland with those at Nuthampstead, Kingston and Glastonbury. The canopy theory deserves greater coverage, and it has an able champion in Donald Cyr.
Following the Irish Zodiac, Prudence Jones talked on the complex subject of numerology, a discipline which overlaps witchcraft, ritual magic, freemasonry and landscape geometry. Everything from King’s College Chapel to Adolf Hitler was touched upon. Nigel Pennick then spoke on Antiquarian Pioneers – the forgotten geomantic researchers. Commencing with the Reverend Duke, who wrote of landscape alignments as early as 1846, he briefly outlined the work of W.H. Black, whose work the I.G.R. rescued from oblivion, and went on to talk about F.J. Bennett, who was using the same mark-points as Alfred Watkins 17 years before Watkins’s ‘revelation’ at Blackwardine. The Black–Watkins possible connexion was also discussed. Mentioning Allcroft and Lockyer, Watkins was put in perspective as the popularizer of aligned sites, an independent worker like Black and Bennett (the work of Bennett will soon be republished by the Institute). The German School, Leugering, Heinsch and Gerlach were then briefly mentioned, summing up with the 1950s ‘plausible hucksters’ attitude and the present revival.
The proceedings then adjourned to the Fountain pub nearby for lunch. After lunch, Kathryn Jayne Preston, editor of Pulsar, spoke on the Lamanche Zodiac, the only known linear terrestrial zodiac. She was followed by Mary Caine, who gave a fully-illustrated aerial view talk on the Glastonbury Zodiac, the first to be discovered, by Katherine Emma Maltwood, whose centenary falls in 1978. Mrs Caine’s remarkable aerial views amply demonstrated the immensity of the engineering. Unfortunately, she related, the pond which formed the eye of Taurus has recently been infilled by the farmer who owns the land.
The next speaker was Professor Robert Lord, who talked on the Pendle Zodiac, the ‘odd man out’ as far as iconography is concerned. To round off the zodiacs, Philip Heselton gave a few thoughts to the Holderness Zodiac and zodiacs in general. As time was then short, Patricia Villiers-Stuart gave a short talk on her latest geometrical experiments, especially with ‘odd number’ divisions of the circle with relation to labyrinths. The Symposium was rounded off by a rushed Bill Cox (editor of the Pyramid Guide) who spoke on the present pyramid and geomantic research and where it may be leading.
We hope to hold another such Symposium in 1978. We would like to thank all the speakers and all those who came to the Symposium to hear them for making it a successful event. Thanks are due to Michael Behrend, Prudence Jones, Ann and Rupert Pennick for stalwart back-up services, stall-manning, tea-making, setting-up and projection services. N.P.