Stonehenge is a Neolithic and Bronze Age megalithic monument located near Amesbury in the English county of Wiltshire. Archaeologists think that the standing stones were erected between 2500 BC and 2000 BC although the surrounding circular earth bank and ditch, which constitute the earliest phase of the monument, have been dated to about 3100 BC. The "henge" portion of its name now belongs to a class of monuments known as henges. Archaeologists define henges as earthworks consisting of a circular banked enclosure with an internal ditch. As often happens in archaeological terminology, this is a holdover from antiquarian usage, and Stonehenge cannot in fact be truly classified as a henge site as its bank is inside its ditch. The Stonehenge complex was built in several construction phases spanning 2,000 years, although there is evidence for activity both before and afterwards on the site. Many early historians were influenced by supernatural folktales in their explanations. Some legends held that Merlin the wizard had a giant build the structure for him or that he had magically transported it from Mount Killaraus in Ireland, while others held the Devil responsible. Henry of Huntingdon was the first to write of the monument around 1130 soon followed by Geoffrey of Monmouth who was the first to record fanciful associations with King Arthur which led the monument to be incorporated into the wider cycle of European medieval romance. The original theory that the Druids were the ones who built the site can be discounted since the Celtic society that spawned the Druid priesthood came into being only after the year 300 BC. In addition to this, the theory that the Druids using the site for sacrifices is thin, considering that the Druids were pagans and performed the majority of their rituals in the woods or mountains, areas better suited for “earth rituals” than an open field. The question that dominates the debate as to what Stonehenge was used for can be easily divided into those that believe it to be a religious or a scientific observatory. The scientific idea carries more weight. Gerald Hawkins noted 165 key sites that he stated correlated very strongly with the rising and setting points of the sun and moon. He believed that because of this, the site could be used to anticipate interstellar phenomena. There have been odd occurrences, like the Hale-Bopp comet passing directly over this site at the turnoff the millennia to support this theory. This has sparked that the idea that the site was created in order to help commemorate the solstices, as the alignment with the sun and moon would seem to indicate. Today, the consensus is that most of the astronomical case, although not all, was overstated.
Michael van Balen at Stonehenge
And yours truly at Stonehenge!
