Stonehenge, a prehistoric stone circle, remains one of the world’s utmost mysterious and archaic structures. Built over 4,000 years ago in Salisbury Plain, scientists and theorists alike are still in the dark as to why Stonehenge was built. Popular belief is that it was used for religious purposes and that it was constructed by the Druids or even the Romans, but the theory was disproved when it was confirmed that the beginning of Stonehenge construction started at least 2000 years before the Celts came. I, on the other hand, believe that Stonehenge operated for scientific or astronomical reasons such as being used as an astronomical calendar and two centuries after being built it was utilized for its healing abilities. Over the course …show more content…
Now the monument at first was used for astrological reasons, but after two centuries the arrival of some special rocks formed the monument into the unique and unusual structure we see today. Timothy Darvill and Geoffrey Wainwright were the leading pair in an excavation of the inner circle of the Stonehenge, and what they discovered in 2006 shed some new light as to what Stonehenge was used for after the construction of the inner circle. Bluestones, the rocks that make up the inner circle, were the special rocks they found, and they came from a site called Carn Menyn in mountainous southwest Wales which is almost 140 miles away from Salisbury Plain. Many scientists still wonder how the ancient people transported the rocks to their cuurent location, but the fact they moved it so far means that it was for an important reason. The site Carn Menyn had altered “springheads” adorned with prehistoric art and Darvill and Wainwright said, “’You get springs that have funny things done to them in the Roman and Iron Age periods, but to see it done in the prehistoric period is rare, so we knew we were on to something,”’(Jones, “New Light on Stonehenge”). They could tell that since there was prehistoric art surrounding this site, it had to mean something special to the people that used it. The ancients believed that the bluestones at Carn Menyn had special powers so it made sense for them to make
Stonehenge and Easter Island are two very old and interesting mysteries and monuments of the world. Stonehenge is outside of Salisbury, England and is consists of lots of grass and giant, grey stones. This site was made between the times of 1520 B.C.E- 3000 B.C.E. There are many reasons why people think Stonehenge was built. Stonehenge was built it using precise stages of construction. Archaeologists said it could have been used for rituals, traditions or even used as a burial site. Easter Island, itself is off the coast of Chile. The Easter Island statues or Moai as called on the Island are big black rocks with long slim faces. The statues seemed to have been used in many different ways such as rituals, worshipping and traditions. While the Easter Island statues were used for worshipping and were carved and then moved, Stonehenge may have been used as a burial site or for ritualistic traditions and was made in different stages in one place.
L.G. Everist creates monuments with enduring elegance. Our monuments are made from Quartzite, one of the world’s most beautiful and strongest stones. Perfectly formed “moons” occasionally appear in the stone. Legend has it that these moons are spots where spirits have touched the stone and left their mark; thus, each piece is unique and has nature’s own fingerprint.
Thesis Statement: The Stonehenge is a complex work of art; as it has been built over different periods of time representing wide range of ideas and thoughts. It is a monument that encapsulates the identity of a collective society of an era. It portrays the belief and value system, status, faith, relationship with the supreme being (god), and technological knowledge of the citizens of a society that is associated with the making of the Stonehenge. The large span of time and ambiguity of the society related to the Stonehenge has made most archeological surveys uncertain and thus, creating a mystery about, why was a monument containing, just stones weighing thousands of tones, in a relatively isolated area built? What was the motivations and purpose behind building it? And, how all these elements give an account of the civilization existing around the area.
Stonehenge history is one of the unsolved mystery by itself because the size of the stones. 3000 B.C. was a rough age that’s the people didn’t had the technology to carry these rocks. Researchers found that the gigantic stone used to build Stonehenge were brought from different area. The assumption is that the stones were carried and brought from somewhere else not close.
The Stonehenge is a distinctive monumental stone that appeared in the late Neolithic period. It is located in Salisbury, White shire, England. The artifact is believed to have been built between 3000 and 1500 BCE. The artifact has artificially shaped stones arranged in a post and lintel
No place has generated so much speculation and wild theories as the standing stones of Stonehenge. After traveling for miles through the rolling hills and plains of the English countryside the sight of this unusual structure made me gasp. A walk around it only provoked more strange feelings. There's a sense that this is something very important. For over 5000 years it has stood silent vigil over the
Although Stonehenge and the Pyramids are both marvels of the ancient world, the differ from each other in many ways. While the construction for both began around the same time period – construction for Stonehenge began around 3100 BCE (Dr. Senta German) while the pyramids began around 2580 BCE (The Great Pyramid of Giza) – the time spent building Stonehenge far exceeded the time spent building the Pyramids. Unlike the Pyramids, Stonehenge was built in three phases. The first phase of construction began “when a great circular ditch about six feet deep was dug with a bank of dirt within it about 360 feet in diameter, with a large entrance to the northeast and a smaller one to the south” (Dr. Senta German). Within this ditch, known as a henge, were 56 pits, known as Aubrey holes filled with either upright bluestones or upright wooden beams, whose original purpose is unknown. The second phase began approximately 100-200 years later and involved a circle of upright wooden posts in the center of this henge. More upright posts were also erected near the northeast and southern entrances. During this phase, the site of Stonehenge was used for burials; “at least 25 of the Aubrey holes were emptied and reused to hold cremation burials and another 30 cremation burial pits were dug into the ditch of the henge and in the eastern portion within the henge enclosure” (Dr. Senta German). During the third and final stage, occurring 400-500 years later, Stonehenge was completely remodeled. The central wooden beams from stage two
This paper proposes that the bluestones were dragged around 3000 BC by Neolithic people, taking a largely overland route except for a crossing of the River Severn. This contrasts with the conventional thinking that the stones were carried on boats across the sea from Milford Haven in south Wales to southern England. Archaeologists have speculated that the bluestones were brought by sea from Milford Haven to the River Avon on Neolithic rafts or slung between sewn-plank boats. But by testing the sea route, the vessels carrying the bluestone capsized and ended within 6 km (4 miles) of embarking at Milford Haven. The importance then shifted away from Milford Haven to another persuasive option that requires fewer risk to be taken. By moving the
The “who’s,” “how’s,” and “why’s” behind this majestic monument are based on many (usually conflicting) myths, guesstimates, and theories. As a result, we have no definite answers for the probing questions about Stonehenge’s existence. However, each theory grants the Neolithic monument its character and mystique, as well as society’s best guesses as to its true origin and purpose. Therefore, I shall proceed to discuss both the fantastical and probable theories behind the mystery of Stonehenge.
The stonehenge was a tone structure established a long time ago by civilization before the druid age. More than 4,000 years ago, the people of the Neolithic period supposedly decided to build a massive monument using Earth, timber and eventually stones. They placed it high on salisbury plain in Wiltshire, england about 37 kilometers southwest of london. THe purpose to build the stonehenge is still to remain a mystery no one till this day knows why this was built and who built it. The blue stones found on this monument are a mix of a good, bad and medium rock.There are a few ancient structures in the world that captivate the imagination and the critical mind of both the scholarly and ordinary individual as Stonehenge. The oldest part of the stonehenge was constructed Ca. 3100 BCE. In 1963, British astronomer Gerald Hawkins published an article in Nature, followed by a book, Stonehenge Decoded, and proposed a hypothesis for at least one purpose of this ancient monument. Standing in the center of Stonehenge, Hawkins recognized twenty-four lines of sight amongst the stones, and later discovered that these lines pointed to significant astronomical
FIRST STAGE: Built in around 3000 BC, the first variation of Stonehenge (known as the earthwork enclosure) consisted of the Aubrey holes (fifty-six chalk pits, approximately one metre wide) and a ditch. Inside the
The Stonehenge is located in Amesbury, Wiltshire. There are many mysteries as well as theories on how the Stonehenge got there and why its there. Nobody really knows for sure what these mysterious bundles of rock could be and what its purpose was. Some say that the Stonehenge was part of some sort of spiritual ground. (“Stonehenge: Facts and Theories about Mysterious Monument,” Livescience.com) People have that theory because there are lots of stuff that was found near the Stonehenge from the same time era which was about 4000 to 5000 years ago that indicates it could have been a spiritual ground. The stuff found near the Stonehenge was many animal bones and flint tools that could mean that area was sacred as
Over a span of 2,000 years, monuments have been added to Stonehenge. While most are buried today, they are still visible and well preserved. Stonehenge’s features include the Aubrey Holes, 350 burial mounds, Cursus, Woodhenge, Durrington Walls Henge, Stonehenge Avenue, and West Amesbury Henge. The Aubrey Holes were the first monuments in Stonehenge, built around 3,000 BCE. The Aubrey Holes were 56 pits inside of a circular enclosure formed by a bank and a ditch. Its main purpose was to store cremated ashes of dead bodies. After the Aubrey Holes were made, bluestones and sarsens were dragged from long distances to construct the circular stone monument. The 350 burial mounds were long barrows meant to cremate and bury the dead. The Cursus, built from 3600 to 3400 BCE, were two long earthwork enclosures. Both Woodhenge and Durrington Walls Henge were timber circle monuments built in 2,300 and 2,500 BCE, respectively. Stonehenge Avenue was an ancient road that lead to Stonehenge monument and was built from 2,500 to 1,700 BCE. Finally, West Amesbury Henge was a stone circle monument built in 2,400
Archaeological research has undergone stunning developments since the birth of the discipline; from its origins as mere antiquarianism, Archaeology’s aims and methods have developed with time: excavations have become more and more organised and precise, with a great focus on the study of stratigraphy and the careful documentation of findings and their locations. At the same time, what archaeologists aim to achieve from the study of material remains has changed, from its early focus on dating and classifying artefacts to using material culture as a means to understand the way people in the past lived and how their societies were organised. This subject encompasses many different time periods, from the earliest ancestors of modern human beings
To drag the sarsen stones, weighing up to 45 tons, or the weight of six elephants, from Marlborough Downs 30 kilometers to the south of Stonehenge would have been quite a accomplishment. The bluestones, in contrast, were about four tons but are believed to have come from a much farther place like the Preseli Mountains nearly 385 kilometres away from Stonehenge. Popular theory suggests the stones were rolled to the Welsh shore, carried on raft around the coast and into the River Avon, at Bristol. Other prehistorians do not believe they were carried that far. These bluestones came from the same Preseli Mountains, but glaciation brought the bluestones to the area surrounding Stonehenge during the last glacier period in history, the period was called the Plyoscene period, it was 650,000 years ago. Out of the other 1,300 stone circle in Britain, Ireland and Brittany, France, most are made of local stone brought no more than seven or eight kilometers. If humans were to have carried these stones all the way from these mountains, they would have only taken the good stones. The bluestones found on Stonehenge are a mix of good, bad, and medium rock. Good bluestones were found in the vicinity of Stonehenge thousands of years before the monument was