Probably the most recognizable ancient monument in the world is Stonehenge. From the outside, it resembles an accumulation of giant blocks. The monument is located on the Salisbury Plains, Wiltshire in the south of England. The name "Stonehenge" has Anglo-Saxon roots and can be translated as "stone fence". However, the history of the great monument began a thousand years before the arrival of the Saxons in Britain in the 5th century. It is much older than the mysterious Celtic Druids who appeared several centuries before our era - in those distant times, Europe did not yet know iron, and there was no Great Pyramid in the Egyptian sands. Who built this mysterious stone monument in prehistoric Europe, and what is its role?
Today, visitors to Stonehenge are presented with large stones located in a circle, surrounded by an earthen embankment, which is the remains of a number of monumental structures erected here in the years 3100-1600. BC e. The creation of Stonehenge took place in three stages, although people lived in these places both before and after the indicated time. The most important, startling discoveries made on the territory of Stonehenge were the holes, or wells, from the Mesolithic era, found under the modern car park. These huge wells, dating from 8500-7650. BC e., are 2.4 feet in diameter. It was possible to establish that pine piles were once driven into them. Three wells, located from east to west, probably performed ritual functions - they served as the basis for totem poles. It is very difficult to determine more precisely what else they were intended for. There are a lot of prehistoric monuments around Stonehenge, including those created in the early Neolithic era (4000-3000 BC), that is, earlier than the world famous monument. Here are the earthen ramparts in Winterbourne, 1.4 miles from the monument, and the Robin Hood Circle (one of the types of prehistoric earthen structures) located I! 1.2 miles northwest of Stonehenge, and the Little Way is a long, narrow, rectangular earthen fence, in 1968 puffs north of the monument. When the creators of Stonehenge began the first phase of construction, they already had experience of trial work on these sacred lands: the landscape has been used for ritual purposes for more than 5,000 years. Here are the earthen ramparts in Winterbourne, 1.4 miles from the monument, and the Robin Hood Circle (one of the types of prehistoric earthen structures) located I! 1.2 miles northwest of Stonehenge, and the Little Way is a long, narrow, rectangular earthen fence, in 1968 puffs north of the monument. When the creators of Stonehenge began the first phase of construction, they already had experience of trial work on these sacred lands: the landscape has been used for ritual purposes for more than 5,000 years. Here are the earthen ramparts in Winterbourne, 1.4 miles from the monument, and the Robin Hood Circle (one of the types of prehistoric earthen structures) located I! 1.2 miles northwest of Stonehenge, and the Little Way is a long, narrow, rectangular earthen fence, in 1968 puffs north of the monument. When the creators of Stonehenge began the first phase of construction, they already had experience of trial work on these sacred lands: the landscape has been used for ritual purposes for more than 5,000 years.they already had experience of trial work on these sacred lands: the landscape has been used for ritual purposes for over 5,000 years.they already had experience of trial work on these sacred lands: the landscape has been used for ritual purposes for over 5,000 years.
The first of three phases of Stonehenge construction began around 3100 BC. e. During this period, the monument consisted of wooden pillars placed in a circle, surrounded by a moat and a rampart. The dimensions of the henge (by this term in archeology it is customary to mean the designation of a flat round or oval area surrounded by boundary earthen ramparts) was 360 feet in diameter. A large entrance was located in the northeastern part of the building, another, smaller one, was on the south side. This monument was erected by hand, only antlers and shoulder blades of bulls or other large horned animals were used from tools. As a result of recent excavations in the area of the moat, horns were found that were used in the construction, left by workers at the site of the monument. However, it should be added that at the bottom of the ditch there were also animal bones,mostly cattle, which are 200 years older than antler tools. It turned out that the bones of the slaughtered animal were not buried right away, perhaps they were sacred objects that were brought to Stonehenge from other, also ritual places. There is not much evidence of the second stage of the construction of Stonehenge, although, judging by the bones found of 200 cremated bodies, there was a burial place for burnt corpses.
The third phase of construction began around 2600 BC. e. Now earthen and wooden structures were replaced by stone hendzhi. In the center of the monument, 80 columns of blue stone were installed in two concentric circles. Each block weighed about 4 tons. They were brought here from the Preseli Mountains in Pembroke County (southwest Wales) from a distance of 186 miles. In addition to the blue stones, a 16-foot-high monolith of blue-gray sandstone, now called the Altar Stone, was brought to Stonehenge. It was brought from the coast of the port of Milford Haven, located south of the Preseli Mountains. How the blue stones were brought to Salisbury Plain is a subject of heated debate, although most archaeologists agree that they were carried by humans. The most likely version is the transportation of stones for the construction of Stonehenge by sea. In the port of Milford Haven, they were lowered into the water with the help of ice rinks and sleds, and then melted down on rafts along the sea and river to Stonehenge. This was an astounding technical achievement for the time.
In 2001, an experiment was conducted: volunteers, using wooden sledges and skating rinks, were able to lower a three-ton stone from the Preseli Mountains to the sea. However, when the boulder was placed on the raft, it slipped into the sea and drowned. An old legend says that the history of the creation of Stonehenge is connected with the name of the wizard Merlin, who, with the help of magic, transferred a huge structure called the "Dancing Giants" from Ireland. If the blue stones were shipped from Wales, the Western origin of Stonehenge can be assumed.
Stonehenge: the ruins of a mysterious monumental structure in the Salbury Plains
It was during the third phase of the construction of Stonehenge that the northeastern entrance of the fence was expanded to match the sunrise at the summer solstice and sunset at the winter solstice. At the same time, a ceremonial passage - an avenue - was completed on the territory of Stonehenge - a pair of parallel ditches and ramparts that extended 1.86 miles from the monument down to the Avon River.
Around 2300 BC e. the blue stones were dug up and replaced by huge sarsen boulders, each 13.5 feet high, 6.8 feet wide, weighing about 25 tons, brought from the Marlborough Downs, 20 miles from the monument. They were arranged in a circle, 108 feet in diameter, and on their tops were bridges - horizontally lying stones. Inside the circle there was a structure that resembled a horseshoe in shape, directed with its open part to the northeast, and consisted of five triligos standing in a row (two large upright stones supporting a third one) and several hewn stones from sarsen. The structure in the shape of a horseshoe consisted of 10 vertically and 5 horizontally placed stones, each weighing 50 tons. Later, during the period 2280-1930. BC e., blue stones were removed and installed,at least three times. As a result, between the circle of sarsen stones and triliths, they formed an inner ring and a horseshoe, which were their mirror image. Researchers believe that most of the blue stones were brought from Wales around this time. In 2000-1600. BC e. outside the circle of sarsen stones, a double ring of hollows known as the Y and Z holes was dug, possibly in order to rearrange the boulders. However, for some reason, the stones were not installed, and over time, the holes were filled with silt. After 1600 BC. e. Stonehenge was not rebuilt and, apparently, forgotten. However, from time to time people came here, as evidenced by the iron Age pottery found in this place, Roman coins, as well as the grave of a headless Saxon dating back to the 7th century. As a result, between the circle of sarsen stones and triliths, they formed an inner ring and a horseshoe, which were their mirror image. Researchers believe that most of the blue stones were brought from Wales around this time. In 2000-1600. BC e. outside the circle of sarsen stones, a double ring of hollows known as the Y and Z holes was dug, possibly in order to rearrange the boulders. However, for some reason, the stones were not installed, and over time, the holes were filled with silt. After 1600 BC. e. Stonehenge was not rebuilt and, apparently, forgotten. However, from time to time people came here, as evidenced by the iron Age pottery found in this place, Roman coins, as well as the grave of a headless Saxon dating back to the 7th century. As a result, between the circle of sarsen stones and triliths, they formed an inner ring and a horseshoe, which were their mirror image. Researchers believe that most of the blue stones were brought from Wales around this time. In 2000-1600. BC e. outside the circle of sarsen stones, a double ring of hollows known as the Y and Z holes was dug, possibly in order to rearrange the boulders. However, for some reason, the stones were not installed, and over time, the holes were filled with silt. After 1600 BC. e. Stonehenge was not rebuilt and, apparently, forgotten. However, from time to time people came here, as evidenced by the iron Age pottery found in this place, Roman coins, as well as the grave of a headless Saxon dating back to the 7th century.which were their mirror images. Researchers believe that most of the blue stones were brought from Wales around this time. In 2000-1600. BC e. outside the circle of sarsen stones, a double ring of hollows known as the Y and Z holes was dug, possibly in order to rearrange the boulders. However, for some reason, the stones were not installed, and over time, the holes were filled with silt. After 1600 BC. e. Stonehenge was not rebuilt and, apparently, forgotten. However, from time to time people came here, as evidenced by the iron Age pottery found in this place, Roman coins, as well as the grave of a headless Saxon dating back to the 7th century.which were their mirror images. Researchers believe that most of the blue stones were brought from Wales around this time. In 2000-1600. BC e. outside the circle of sarsen stones, a double ring of hollows known as the Y and Z holes was dug, possibly in order to rearrange the boulders. However, for some reason, the stones were not installed, and over time, the holes were filled with silt. After 1600 BC. e. Stonehenge was not rebuilt and, apparently, forgotten. However, from time to time people came here, as evidenced by the iron Age pottery found in this place, Roman coins, as well as the grave of a headless Saxon dating back to the 7th century.outside the circle of sarsen stones, a double ring of hollows known as the Y and Z holes was dug, possibly in order to rearrange the boulders. However, for some reason, the stones were not installed, and over time, the holes were filled with silt. After 1600 BC. e. Stonehenge was not rebuilt and, apparently, forgotten. However, from time to time people came here, as evidenced by the iron Age pottery found in this place, Roman coins, as well as the grave of a headless Saxon dating back to the 7th century.outside the circle of sarsen stones, a double ring of hollows known as the Y and Z holes was dug, possibly in order to rearrange the boulders. However, for some reason, the stones were not installed, and over time, the holes were filled with silt. After 1600 BC. e. Stonehenge was not rebuilt and, apparently, forgotten. However, from time to time people came here, as evidenced by the iron Age pottery found in this place, Roman coins, as well as the grave of a headless Saxon dating back to the 7th century.as evidenced by the iron Age pottery found in this place, Roman coins, as well as the grave of a decapitated Saxon, dating from the 7th century.as evidenced by the iron Age pottery found in this place, Roman coins, as well as the grave of a decapitated Saxon, dating from the 7th century.
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Today there is a lot of speculation as to what Stonehenge was like in the beginning. An experiment in the 1990s showed that a group of 200 people on wooden sleds on greased wooden slats could deliver 80 sarsen stones from Marlborough Downs to Stonehenge in 2 years or more if the work was seasonal. The experiment made it possible to establish how the stones were placed: on wooden A-shaped structures, boulders were lifted and set in a vertical position using ropes. The bridge stones must have been carefully lifted on wooden platforms to the level of the tops of the vertically standing boulders, and then using levers to set them in the desired positions. A stunning fact from the history of the construction of Stonehenge is the processing of stones using carpentry technologies. By blows of stone balls, the so-called mallets,samples of which were found during excavations, the boulders were given the necessary shape and size, slots and grooves were made in them, due to which the bridge stones were securely fixed on the tops of vertically standing boulders, and the bridge stones were connected to each other in a different way - by thorns.
However, it is more interesting not how, but why Stonehenge was built. Unfortunately, archaeological finds from the excavation site of this majestic structure are very scarce. In part because, until recently, with the exception of the past two decades, little was reported of research results and the reporting of archaeological expeditions left much to be desired. Found skeletons disappeared or were seriously damaged, artifacts moved from place to place, and excavation logs were destroyed. However, the grains of information that have been obtained on the territory of Stonehenge and in the graves nearby allow you to feel the charm of the life of the people who inhabited these lands in the early Bronze Age.
The main graves of Stonehenge date from around 2400-2150. BC e. (the period of the early Bronze Age). As a result of the examination of the skeleton dug from the outer ditch encircling the monument, it was found that 6 arrows were fired at a person from close range. Probably two were shooting: one on the left, the other on the right. Was this an execution or some kind of sacrifice? Another surprising burial was discovered in 2002 at Amesbury, 2.8 miles southeast of Stonehenge. The find was nicknamed the Archer of Amesbury, or King of Stonehenge, as the valuables found in this burial pointed to
high social status of the deceased. The recovered items include five baked clay pots, 16 delicate flint tips, several wild boar tusks, two sandstone bracelets (for protecting the wrists when pulling the string), a pair of gold hair jewelry, three small copper knives, a set of tools for processing flint and metal … The gold objects found in the burial are the most ancient, and the Archer himself, apparently, was one of the oldest metallurgists in the British Isles. Examination of the skeleton showed that the Archer was of a robust build, 35-45 years old; it was possible to establish that he had an abscess on his jaw, and that the patella was broken. However, the most striking finds from the burial site are still waiting for their researchers.
Stonehenge: huge stones from sarsen
When examining the canines of the animal using oxygen isotope analysis, it was found that the wild boar came from the Alps - from Switzerland, Austria or Germany. Analysis of the copper knives showed that they were exported from Spain or France. This is an amazing discovery - for another 4200 years, European cultures interacted with each other. Could this richest burial mean that the King of Stonehenge, who was obviously an influential person, had a high social position, played an important role in the construction of the first stone structure? The remains of a second man were found near the grave, buried at about the same time. Analysis of the bones showed that it could be the son of the Archer. Along with him were two gold hair ornaments, made in the same style as the Archer's jewelry, but for some reason they ended up in the man's jaws. Oxygen isotope analysis showed that the man grew up in the Salisbury Plains, although he lived in the Midlands or northeastern Scotland for the last ten years.
Not far from Stonehenge, in the settlement of Boscombe Down, an early Bronze Age burial was discovered - the graves of the so-called Boscombe archers. The name is due to the fact that the burial contained flint arrowheads. Seven bodies were found in the burial ground: three - children, one - a teenager and three men, apparently connected with each other in some way. The finds from this burial are similar in style to those from the grave of the Archer of Amesbury, and among them an incredible amount of fired clay pottery. And again, thanks to the study of the teeth, it was possible to answer the question of where these people were from. In this case, the men were born in Wales, but moved to southern Britain as children. Since the Boscombe archers lived around the time blue stones were brought to Stonehenge from Wales, many researchers believethat these people could have accompanied the boulders on the way to the Salisbury Plain, 186 miles away. In this case, the graves of the Amesbury Archer and Boscombe Archers can tell about the amazing people who participated in the construction of Stonehenge. However, for what purpose was this mysterious and unique monument created?
Since the builders of Stonehenge oriented the building according to the position of the rising sun during the summer
solstice and the setting but the time of the winter solstice, many researchers (in particular, an astronomer from England, Gerald Hawkins) decided that the arrangement of stones is associated with the position of astronomical bodies. Further analysis of the data collected by Hawkins in support of the theory showed that the alleged correspondence of the constituent parts of the monument with astronomical bodies was formed as a result of the combination of elements from different stages of construction, and pits and holes of natural origin are not part of the monument.
It should be recalled that although Stonehenge is a unique structure, it cannot be considered an isolated object. Stonehenge sits at the center of a vast prehistoric ceremonial site surrounded by numerous mounds (burial mounds). It has already been said above that Salisbury Plain was considered a sacred place for thousands of years before the construction of Stonehenge. But what is meant by this holiness? One theory was proposed by British archaeologist Mike Parker Pearson and archaeologist from Madagascar Ramilisonin. Based on the data of modern anthropology, they came to the conclusion that for the people who inhabited the territory of Stonehenge, the tree was a symbol of life, and the strength of the boulders was associated with their ancestors. Since there are two important wood henge close to Stonehenge - Darrington Walls and Woodhenge,Pearson and Ramilisonina hypothesized that this was a ritual road for funeral processions. She walked from the east - from where the sun rises - from the wooden Darrington Walls down to the Avon River, and then up the avenue west - where the sun sets - to Stonehenge, the place of worship of the ancestors. It must have been a sacred journey from tree to stone through water, symbolizing the path from life to death. The insufficient number of finds in the central part of Stonehenge allows us to conclude that access to the monument was limited, not everyone could walk inside the structure. Whether the chosen ones were priests, or whether only the Amesbury Archer had access, is hard to say. Obviously, the stone structure contains a deep meaning associated with the ancient beliefs of ancestors,although none of the existing assumptions has ever revealed the truth about the outstanding builders of Stonehenge.
B. Houghton Source: "Great secrets and mysteries of history"