Orcadian Perspectives...

'The Mystic Muck Pile', a magnificent example of GST, Orkney, early 21st C.

One day when I happened to fly to Orkney and was walking about there, I thought I might pop over to one of the smaller islands that's only accessible by foot at low tide. It being a popular little destination, the Orcadians (no relation to the Orcs, or at best a fairly distant one) had built a concrete walkway over to the island to prevent tourists from being swept away to a watery grave if the tide were to come rushing in ferociously when they were only half way across. It's a dramatic place, Orkney is. The only problem with the walkway is that it is only crossable at low tide; otherwise you risk being swept away to a watery grave when the tide rushes in ferociously.

The Mystic Mountain Nebula, courtesy of NASA

The walkway over to The Brough of Birsay, tide rushing in ferociously....

I arrived just in time to see the tide rushing in ferociously. That was close, I thought. So I was reduced to poking about on shore, where I came across the above magnificent example of Gordon's String Theory (GST). It reminded me of something, other than the obvious collision between several barbecues and a large ball of multi-coloured rope...The sharp-sighted amongst you - and possibly the near-sighted as well - will see immediately that it resembles, eerily you might say, the nebula known as The Mystic Mountain. The literature describing this extraordinary structure in space compares it to something in a JRR Tolkien novel (did I mention Orcs?) Relative to my GST example, it is quite large (about 3 light years tall compared to 3 feet). But other surprises were to follow...as one circumnavigates* the remarkable  Mystic Muck Pile of Orkney, other perspectives emerge.

Modernish Newfoundland, with TCH**

Another perspective...!!

Indeed, it may not be a reference to some far-off nebulous nebula at all, it's possibly an early map of Newfoundland, complete with the Grand Banks, and even the TCH** in red! Those clever Orcadians!...well, except for the low tide walkway, which we won't mention again***. Note how the mountainous regions, aka the barrens, are depicted in a sublim(ish) blue...The purpose of this is unknown, although it is pretty, considering that the only Newfoundlanders who live there are colourblind moose. I believe it would be not too presumptuous to hazard that if one were to stand on one's head at this point at certain times of the year (to achieve the necessary perspective), one might be able to actually see Newfoundland. So far this has been neither proved nor disproved; considerable further research is required (did I mention Orkney Black Ale? Also worth considerable research!). Not far down the same coast - well, in Ireland, actually - there are places where it is possible to see mirages of Brazil, so why not Newfoundland from Orkney? I will leave you to ponder that.

* a fancy word that means to travel around something.

** Trans-Canada Highway, always referred to in Newfoundland as the TCH.
*** Okay, we will mention it again, as it is, in fact, a brilliant contemporary solution for transporting goods and people to and from the small island called The Brough of Birsay. The island is home to extensive remains of Norse settlement which had a major church, probably a monastery, and a complex of buildings that are thought to have been the headquarters of Earl Thorfinn (c.1005-1065), who ruled much of northern Scotland and the Western Isles in the 11th Century.  Beyond the settlement the island rises to sea cliffs atop of which is the Brough Lighthouse, built in 1925 and converted to solar power in 2001. Given that the Norse Vikings were also visiting Newfoundland about the same time as the Earl ruled in Orkney, it is not surprising that they would have left a map lying on the beach, albeit cleverly disguised as a pile of pillage.