Description
Book SynopsisA beautiful new edition of a classic work of landscape history, in which Alfred Watkins introduced the idea of ancient 'ley lines' criss-crossing the English countryside. First published in 1925,
The Old Straight Track described the author's theory of 'ley lines', pre-Roman pathways consisting of aligned stone circles and prehistoric mounds, used by our Neolithic ancestors. Watkins's ideas have intrigued and inspired generations of readers – from historians to hill walkers, and from amateur archaeologists to new-age occultists. This edition of
The Old Straight Track, with a substantial introduction by Robert Macfarlane, will appeal to all who treasure the history, contours and mystery of Britain's ancient landscapes.
Trade ReviewWatkins re-enchanted the English landscape, investing it with fresh depth and detail, prompting new ways of looking and new reasons to walk -- Robert Macfarlane
A remarkable book... Alfred Watkins [was a] visionary who saw beyond the bounds of his time' -- John Michell
Robert Macfarlane in his introduction to this new edition [...] is respectful, finding new relevance in Watkin's writing. The result is to fold Watkins, the counter-cultural mystic-modernist, into the cultural landscape, laying the track for others to follow * TLS *
A stimulating historical mediation on landscape * Daily Mail *
Careful erudite topography in the grand Enlightenment tradition, which nevertheless presents a vision of Herefordshire that is awe-inspired * Spectator *
