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Megalithic art studies by other people

• Tom Flowers
1. Spiral, cup, dot and ring: the sun (I also believe Woodhenge etc. to be an enlarged version)
2. Zigzag: the study of sunlight.
3. Zigzag between two parallel lines: study of the reflection of sunlight as it travels between two reflective surfaces especially so as it passes down the entrance to a tomb. Examples, Newgrange & Maeshowe
• Robert Little
"A series of arched, overlaid maps of significant events in the sky at different times of the year, with particulars about moon phases, major bodies in motion and the changes in position {between arches)of things of importance.  Some of the symbols might also include horizon objects to keep the maps oriented with the locale.  The moon phases would be significant for preparations in advance or just after the sun festivals or the fire festivals."
• Anders Lundin
"In the second row from the top (red.: double serpentiforms), there is a piece that looks like two waves. They got me thinking of the buckles that Sophus Muller put into system. In Sweden we call them "binocular fibulas". The minute I saw These figures I thought, Sophus Muller. I don't now if this will be of any help to you but it's an idea."
• The Grogans
"There are many explanations for the circle being an early art form... it is an eternal line... sacred rituals like to cancel out time... the horizon is a circle if you spin while looking at it : ) - possibly the first means for an 'all over view of things' until flight & space  travel.... the eye lens is a circle... and the cross is used in esoteric designs to denote the intersection of the sacred with the mundane (everyday life) and to bring order to chaos.  When drawing the symbol, the artist could be trying to bring these abstract experiences into form for ritual use."
• Seandalai
"You are already are aware of this I am sure, but you asked for comments... my professor in college pointed out the obvious significance of the trinity in these petroglyphs, and suggested they might represent the triple goddess, and her three aspects of maiden mother and crone.  Also, he mentioned the importance of the owl in the mythology and that the spirals might be representations of eyes."
• Dito Morales
"There is a fairly well established vocabulary for discussing visual imagery. This vocabulary applies to images we call art and those we hesitate to consider "art." Either way, these widely understood terms are useful for describing forms and interpretations of those forms.
• figurative vs non-figurative:
This is probably intended to indicate representational vs non-representational. Representational art quite simply represents some thing. Non-representational is synonymous with non-objective, which means that no material object is represented, or a shape that has no material existence, for example, invented shapes that never existed anywhere except in the image maker's mind.
The "figure" in "figurative" can be misleading at times since frequently a "figure" suggests a human figure (similar to how the word "numeral" is used in mathematics, or "character" in writing). [note that even Andrea called a geometric "figure", "non-figurative." It can get confusing]
• abstract:
"Abstract" is frequently misunderstood as synonymous with non-representational or non-objective. Abstraction is the act of transforming visible forms into a pattern resembling the original model. Something of the original form remains, although radically interpreted through varying degrees of stylization, simplification or reduction. Think of reading the "abstract" of a paper. You expect the abstract to give you a representation of the paper, but in a greatly condensed or compressed manner. This is an analogy I use frequently, even though image making is not the same as writing.
• symbolic:
Symbolic images reference something (thing, idea, emotion...) Indicative symbols/signs are arbitrary signifiers referencing or pointing to something beyond themselves (be they geometric, numeric, or textual). Indexical signs maintain some direct physical connection to that which they signify (hand prints versus mere images of hands). Iconic signs resemble that which they signify (for example, a drawing of an oak tree versus the words "oak tree"). Also, there is a difference between communicative signs and expressive signs. Expressions are always signs, but not all signs are expressions. Expressive signs convey a meaning beyond that which is communicated, by means of *how* it is communicated.
It is difficult to imagine any purposeful image that is not a sign (symbolic), so I can't see using "symbolic" to delineate one example or class of rock art from another.
• schematic:
Most examples I've seen of "Schematic Art," such as the possible depictions of weapons from the Iberian peninsula and British Isles, are more simply and correctly termed stylized or abstract 'art.' Introducing the idea of a schema implies a diagram, chart, or graph. This implies a function, but does not address the form.
The primary difficulty of affixing these terms to prehistoric rock art is that they involve a knowledge we usually don't posses. Naturalistically represented images are fairly easy to recognize at times, but calling an image "abstract" implies knowing what the represented thing was prior to its being abstracted. Likewise, interpreting an image as non-representational implies  the knowledge that no object was the basis of the form of the image. Terms like "motif" and "element" are safe, neutral and vital to any formal analysis (analysis of form).
Unfortunately simply describing a work of rock art is of little consequence without investigating its meaning. Starting off with the correct terms helps."
• Elisabeth English
"In studying early childhood art forms, one discovers that the earliest "art" done by children in almost ANY culture and any era as far back as has been studied & documented, is of the circle, or many circles in spirals. It's the first thing infants draw, when given a crayon. Next, as they grow older, they'll draw  arched lines, then criss-cross lines, and finally: S-shapes. I wonder of there's any correlation between children's' eye-hand coordination growing ever more sophisticated as they develop their brains and some prehistoric rock artists... in the very earliest evidence of that art."

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