Stonehenge is visited by 1 million tourists annually, but it remains a mystery. Scientists attribute its construction to the Neolithic period, but the first mention of this "wonder of the world" for some reason is found only in the XI century AD.
Who built it?
Version number 1. Celts
For a long time, scientists believed that Stonehenge was built by the Celts. However, today this version has been refuted. The dates do not agree. The first Celtic archaeological culture (Hallstatt) appeared in the 9th century BC. While the dates officially accepted today for the construction of Stonehenge boil down to the fact that the last stage of its construction falls on the XI century BC.
Version number 2. Ancient Britons
If not the Celts, then who? Professor Michael Pearson (University of Sheffield), head of the ten-year research Stonehenge Riverside Project and author of Stonehenge: Investigating the Greatest Mystery of the Stone Age, claims that the megalithic complex was built by the ancient Britons, representatives of the tribes that lived in the British Isles at the end of the Bronze Age, during the Neolithic … Today it is the most "working" version.
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Version number 3. Merlin
In the Middle Ages, the legend set forth in The History of the Britons by Galfrid of Monmouth was popular. It lies in the fact that the megalithic complex was transferred from Ireland by the magician Merlin. The legendary magician thus fulfilled the will of Aurelius Ambrosi (uncle of King Arthur) to perpetuate 460 British leaders treacherously killed by the Saxons during the negotiations. Since then, the Britons have called this complex "Dance of the Giants".
Version number 4. Hoaxers
There is also a version that Stonehenge is a hoax, "worked" in the XX century. In 2013, an article went viral on the Internet proving that the famous Bronze Age monolith was built between 1954 and 1958.
As evidence, the author of the material cites a lot of "sensational" photographic materials, where some people use cranes to install megaliths in the ground. The theoretical "base" is also given: allegedly the British Ministry of Defense bought up land in the Stonehenge area and conducted military exercises there until World War II.
During the war, the territories of nearby villages were evicted and allegedly are still under the rule of military structures. The author writes: “This“center of ancient civilization”,“heritage of great ancestors”,“monument of humanity”, which has become the most important cult center of no less purposefully implanted“spirituality”, was deliberately and purposefully erected on the territory protected by the British military department.
The version is "hot", but unfounded. What is presented in it as the construction of Stonehenge is just its restoration. We will tell about it later.
Why did they build it?
Version number 1. Observatory
Today, the generally accepted version is that Stonehenge is an ancient observatory. The authorship of this version belongs to the professor of astronomy at Boston University Gerald Hawkins. In the late 1950s, he entered into a computer the coordinates of the plates and other parameters of Stonehenge, as well as a model of the movement of the Sun and Moon.
In 1965, the scientist wrote the book "Deciphered Stonehenge", where he gave evidence that Stonehenge made it possible to predict astronomical phenomena, being at the same time an observatory, a computing center and a calendar.
Another famous astronomer, Fred Hoyle, also dealt with the Stonehenge problem and found that the builders of the megalithic complex knew the exact orbital period of the moon and the length of the solar year.
Version 2. Galaxy model
In 1998, astronomers recreated a computer model of the original appearance of Stonehenge and concluded that the stone observatory is also a cross-sectional model of the solar system. According to the ideas of the ancients, the solar system consists of twelve planets, two of which are located beyond the orbit of Pluto, and one more - between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter.
Version No. 3. Ritual complex
A four-year study by Ludwig Boltzmann's Austrian Institute for Archaeological Exploration and Virtual Archeology has established that Stonehenge is not a lonely megalith, but part of a huge ritual complex of 18 parts located in an area of 12 square kilometers from Stonehenge.
The survey was carried out using remote sensing and other advanced geophysical methods.
Version number 3. "Disco"
Perhaps the most original version of the purpose of Stonehenge (if you do not take into account the alien base for humanoids) is the version that Stonehenge is an ancient "disco".
Professor Rupert Till, an expert in acoustics and music technology at the University of Hindersfield, conducted research and concluded that the complex's gigantic stones are ideal sound reflectors. When placed in a specific order, they can produce interesting acoustic effects.
Of course, Rupert Till did his experiments (after computer modeling) not in England, but in the state of Washington, where there is an exact copy of the megalithic complex. This version, although it seems strange, does not exclude the previous one - ritual dances to the accompaniment of musical instruments could be held in the temple.
How was it built?
Shedding light on how Stonehenge was built, scientists have helped study the materials of which it is composed. The complex is composed of three types of stones:
1) Dolerite ("blue" stone, more precisely, gray sandstone with a bluish tint)
2) Rhyolite
3) Volcanic tuff.
Stones of these rocks are found only in the mountains of Wales (210 km from Stonehenge, and taking into account the features of the relief - 380 km).
According to the researcher of Stonehenge, Richard Atkinson, stones were transported on a wooden sled over logs. Experiments have shown that 24 people can move a load of one ton in this way at a speed of one and a half kilometers per day.
Most of the way passed through water. The speed of movement was also facilitated by the fact that the stones were processed even before they were moved into place, using both stone tools and heat treatment for this.
According to Gerald Hawkins, to install the blocks, they first dug a hole in size, three walls of which were steep, and one with an angle of 45 degrees, which was used as a receiving ramp.
Before placing the stone, the walls of the pit were lined with wooden stakes. Thanks to them, the stone slid down without showered the ground. The lower parts of the blocks, chipped in the form of a blunt cone, could be rotated along their axis even after the ground was compacted.
What's left of Stonehenge?
If we look at a painting by John Conseble, painted from life on the territory of Stonehenge in 1835, we will see heaps of heaps of stones. This is how the legendary megalithic complex looked until the beginning of the 20th century. Since then, as we know, he has changed. Not everyone knows about this, but Stonehenge has undergone a serious and long restoration.
Its first stage took place back in 1901. Reconstruction continued until 1964, and information about the work was carefully hidden. When it became known to the general public, it generated numerous attacks from the public and the press. There was something to be indignant at. In fact, the complex was rebuilt. The restorers, with the help of cranes, erected megaliths and lintels, strengthened the stones, and concreted their foundations.
In general, Stonehenge is “not the same”, but it is not customary to mention this in booklets. Otherwise, this most famous (but far from unique) megalithic complex would not provide an influx of 1 million tourists a year.