Stones of Hylkevik
There are three stones at Hylkevik. One of the stones has been labeled as an Iron Age grave marker. Two of the stones have a close alignment with the equinoxes
- Stone 1
The top face is aligned with the celestial equator for Brantevik. The path of the sun and the planets will wander about the celestial equator throughout the year. The sun’s path will lie exactly on on the celestial equator during the equinoxes. On the winter side of the equinoxes, the top of the stone will be in shadow, On the summer side of the equinoxes, the top of the stone will be illuminated. The north face of the stone is aligned along the east-west cardinal directions. The sunrise of the equinoxes will be aligned with the north face. - Stone 2
On the top of the stone, are horizontal and vertical surfaces. The corner intersection of these surfaces form a line that runs directly east-west. On the equinoxes, the sun will rise from the sea aligned precisely with this corner fold.
 |  |
| Stone 1 | Stone 2 |
Location
There are three stones located in a cow pasture that is about 1.8 km south-west of Brantevik Two of the stones (1 & 2) seem to have an alignment with yearly solar events
Stone 1
Fornsök - Riksantikvarieämbetet 
Stone 1 is the most prominent of the stones lying in an open field with a commanding view of the sea. In the chapter “I tidernas gryning” written by U. Wallebom in the book Brantevik edited by B. Mattson and J. Thavenius, it is claimed that this stone is a tombstone but also cautions that many of the stones found southwest of Brantevik could be cow-scratching posts erected in recent times by farmers. “Mellan Brantevik och Gislövshammar finns många resta stenar som är spår efter gravar från järnåldern. Men det kan vara lurigt att se hur gamla de är! Det sags att visa av dem är uppställda i sen tid som ¨klistrena¨ åt korna. Här en äkta gravsten i hagen strax nedanför Hylkegården.”
Stone 1 and the Celestial Equator
The top surface of the stone is quite flat and angled on plane of 36 ± 1 degrees with the normal vector facing within a couple of degrees of north. This plane coincides very closely to the plane of the celestial equator at the latitude of Brantevik. The vertical north and south faces of the stone are aligned within a degree or so of the east-west cardinal directions
Celestial Equator Fun-Facts
The stars revolve around the celestial pole in path parallel to the celestial equator. During the year, the path of the sun and planets “wander” 23° (the tilt of the earth) above and below the celestial equator. On the equinoxes (21-March and 21-September), The sun’s path follows the celestial equator exactly. Because of our modern lifestyle, many people do not appreciate how extreme the variation in direction of the sunrise and sunset through the year at northern latitudes. In Brantevik, the sunrise at Midsummer is 47 degrees north of east and the sunrise on Christmas day is 43 degrees south of east - a change of 90 degrees! For reference, the angular width of the Sun (or Moon) is 0.5 degrees.
 |  |
| Sunrise at the Spring Equinox. Only on the equinoxes, facing directly east, the sunrise will closely follow the surface of Stone 1 | Star Trails. A 4 hour timelapse video of star trails facing east. The star trails on the celestial equator are straight lines while the star trails become more curved close to the celestial poles |
Stone 1 Surface illumination at solar noon at the equinox
Before the Spring Equinox, the top surface of the stone will be in shadow. A few days after the Spring Equinox, the top surface of the stone will be illuminated by the sun.
Stone 1 Winter Solstice Alignment
The top surface of Stone 1, which is canted parallel to the celestial equatorial plane, is in the shape of a parallelogram. The major diagonal axis of the parallelogram is azimuthally aligned with the sunrise on the winter solstice in Brantevik.
Stone 1 and Bornholm Winter Solstice Alignment
Bornholm is clearly seen with the naked eye from Stone 1. On the winter solstice, the sunrise is in line between Stone 1 and the extreme northern tip of Bornholm. Plots from https://sun-direction.com/
Stone 2
Fornsök - Riksantikvarieämbetet 
Stone 2 is located 105 meters to the north of Stone 1. On the top of the stone, are horizontal and vertical surfaces. The corner intersection of these surfaces form a line that runs directly east-west. On the equinoxes, the sun will rise from the sea aligned precisely with this corner fold.
Spring Equinox Sunrise at Stone 2
