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History of StonehengeOn the chalk downs that form the Salisbury plain sits a brooding and massive stone monument that has often been misunderstood and frequently romanticized. Awe, grandeur, and mystery are words often used when describing Stonehenge.
It’s gigantic uprights and massive lintels loom from the dim mists of time and have fascinated us for thousands of years. Geoffrey of Monmouth wrote in the 12th Century that Merlin, the great magician of Arthurian fame, accompanied Uther Pendragon to Ireland where, with his magic, he dismantled the Round stones that had been brought from Africa by giants. They were re-erected near present day Amesbury at the site of a great battle in which Britons under their rightful King Aurelius wrest control of their land back from the hated Saxons. Aurelius was said to be buried there after his death, as was likewise Uther when his time came. The reality is something other. It is at once more prosaic and far more fascinating. Stonehenge in its placeStonehenge was not the first great building project in Wiltshire, nor was it the last. It is not the isolated phenomenon that it may seem. All over Europe, Stone Age people raised monuments of massive stones. The landscape of western Europe is dotted with megalithic structures known as menhirs. Burial mounds and stone cairns are scattered from the Orkneys to Malta. Many other, though not all, such construction has been lost to us because they were made of wood. It is impossible to say how many of these constructions were built since the ice receded and human culture returned to lands now free of ice and snow. In the area near Stonehenge are found countless tombs, many dating to over 6,000 years ago. Some of these are long barrows, large funerary structures ringed with causeways and ranging up to 100 meters in length. Others are small round barrows centered in bowl shaped ditches. Other mysterious structures called cursuses are also to be found. Their use is unknown. Henges are circular earthworks surrounded by a bank and a ditch. Some contained construction of wood such as at Woodhenge, others of stone. They are known throughout the British Isles, with concentrations in the Orkneys and Wessex. Stonehenge is easily the most famous. Stonehenge IThe first known monument on the site of Stonehenge was built in about 2950 BCE. It consisted of the circular embankment, the ditch from which the dirt for the embankment was taken, and a ring of 56 holes today known as Aubrey Holes. The bank was cut in two places for entrance. It was undoubtedly used for religious purposes. It’s solar orientation is unmistakable. Stonehenge IIStonehenge was changed after about a half century. It appears that a wooden structure was added and the ditch partially filled. This phase lasted until about 2400BCE. During this time, the monument appears to have been used for cremation burials. The emphasis had changed. Stonehenge IIIAs early as 2550 BCE, a new phase of construction at Stonehenge began. A circle of bluestones was erected. Over time, the circle of Sarsen stone that so defines Stonehenge as we know it were added, as were the Sarcen trilithons and the horseshoe setting of bluestone. By 1800 BCE, Stonehenge consisted of two stone circles and two horseshoes. The last construction, consisting of the Y and Z holes, may never have been completed. Who and Why?Why Stonehenge was built and who built it has been asked for
centuries. Many of the explanations are as fanciful as Geoffrey’s. The astronomical
orientation of many of its features appear to be quite obvious, but this has
not always been recognized. Some have supposed it belonged to the Romans.
Vespasian built a camp a short distance away, but It is clear to those who study Stonehenge with a scientific eye, that the prehistoric people of Britain possessed a greater knowledge of the heavens than they have been given credit for. Archeologists who also know astronomy have found celestial orientations for many ancient structures. Can Stonehenge be the greatest of these? Go to:
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