Stonehenge in the county of Wiltshire in England is perhaps the most famous henge in the world. It attracts thousands of tourists every year and at the summer and winter solstice, the area is filled with people of differing beliefs from druids to New Age followers who gather before dawn to watch the Sun rise up in a particular way through the standing stones. That is what Stonehenge is, a collection of standing stones arranged in a circle which appear to have some astronomical designs to them.
However, this was not always the case. We can view Stonehenge as being constructed over two periods of time. The first structure was much simpler. It consisted of building an earth bank, a ditch and then a circle of holes dug into the ground. Each hole was approximately a metre wide and a metre deep. They were discovered in the 1600s by John Aubrey, an antiquarian. They became known as the Aubrey Holes. Not a terribly flattering way to be remembered! However, the circle they made was not small as it was measured at a diameter of 87 metres which is 284 feet.
This first structure was constructed around 3,000 BCE. It then appears to have been left untouched until about 2150 BCE when the present stones were raised. Considering that some of these stones weighed about four tonnes, it would have been no mean feat. However, that was not the most amazing thing about them. The stones are bluestones and we know where they must have come from. And it wasn’t local to Wiltshire.
They were carved out from the Preseli Mountains in south-west Wales. This is a distance of 240 miles. It is not certain how they were transported but it is thought they may have come part of the way by boat and then either sledged over the ground or on rollers made of tree trunks to get them to their destination. In all, they had to transport 82 0f the stones. It was a marvel for the time and in some ways was similar to the construction of the Great Pyramid of Giza in Egypt. Obviously, the latter was a much bigger project.
However, we are still left with the question as to its purpose. There is no shortage of theories. They range from an astronomical observatory, a temple to their gods, a place of healing or even a place of sacrifice. All are possible. Finally, in recent years, aerial investigations using scanners have revealed that Stonehenge is part of a much larger set of ditches, banks and standing stones. Perhaps in the future, we shall find out the truth but don’t hold your breath.
John Pullen 