Dancing with the moon goddess in Callanish

THE LUNAR standstill this month at the Neolithic standing stones in Callanish, in the Outer Hebrides, was a rare event. As the moon's journey through the sky takes nearly 19 years, the standstill only takes place three or four times in an average lifetime. Many worshipers from alternative religions travelled to Callanish to witness the moon "walk across the earth".

The site at Callanish actually comprises three different locations. There are three stone circles, the largest of which is shown above. These stones were buried in peat and were only rediscovered in the 19th century.

This avenue of stones would once have extended for at least a mile through what is now the village of Callanish, on the Isle of Lewis. They would have ended at a burial cairn that would have kept ancestral bones. It is thought that during important ceremonies these bones were processed along this pathway before the spirits of the dead were released within the circle.

What makes Callanish such an intriguing spot is its placing with a "Sacred landscape". In this photo you can just make out the lines of a hill known to Gaelic-speaking locals as Cailleach na Mointeach - or Sleeping Beauty. During the lunar standstill the moon rises over Sleeping Beauty, creeps along the horizon before setting behind another hill.Picture: Margaret and Ron Curtis. (The Curtises offer guided tours of Callanish. Find out more at VisitScotland.)

On cloudless nights during the standstill an extraordinary optical illusion can be seen. If someone stands on a stone close to the circle at the point when the moon is about to set, their silhouette is back-projected onto the moon. At first the figure is tiny, but grows until they appear bigger than the moon itself.Picture: Margaret and Ron Curtis

Moonrise to moonset during the standstill takes nearly four hours. The moon sets at three o'clock in the morning only to regleam - or reappear - through the standing stones. It is thought that to ancient people this signified a rebirth.Picture: Margaret and Ron Curtis

A magnificent June sunset paints a fantastic backdrop to the standing stones.

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Druids and moon worship in the sacred landscape of Callanish