Photo Non-Contest #152 -- Vertical

Written Inc's theme for this week is "vertical," and I'm going with the very first thing that came to my mind when I read his post.
In the summer of 2008, I spent one week in Orkney, the islands north of Scotland.  It was the most incredible place I'd ever been.  Seriously.  The whole area is an archaeologist's dream, and the past and present mingle in a way you'd never see in a more commercialized place.
One of the most amazing things I saw (among many amazing things) were the Standing Stones of Stenness, a ring made some 4500 years ago for a purpose that no one has known for eons of time.  The stones are unguarded in a pasture, and they quietly count the years of puny little humans.  Awesome does not even begin to describe what it's like to see them.
I stayed in a hotel a mile or so down the road for several days, but I got my best photos of these stones all on one very sunny day, some pics in the morning, some in the afternoon.  (Look at the shadows to see which.)

There were actually plenty of tourists around, but I managed to get all my photos looking as if the place were deserted.  It is, however, a pity that I didn't take at least one pic with a person in it for size comparison.  Oh well.  That angled stone on the far right is roughly 17 feet tall.

Here's that tall, angled stone viewed from the side.  It's about 8 inches thick.

And one more view.  This one gives you an idea of just how huge the thing is when you stand beside it. And I am not a small woman by any means.

Please click on the pics to see them full-sized.