Stonehenge

Stonehenge is a Neolithic and Bronze Age monument located near Amesbury in the English county of Wiltshire, about 8 miles (13 km) northwest of Salisbury. It is composed of earthworks surrounding a circular setting of large standing stones, known as megaliths. There is some debate about the age of the stone circle, but most archaeologists think that it was mainly constructed between 2500 BC and 2000 BC. The older circular earth bank and ditch, which constitute the earliest phase of the monument, have been dated to about 3100 BC.

Stonehenge

The name Stonehenge is derived from the Old English words Stanhen gist meaning the 'hanging stones' and has given its name 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. Despite being contemporary with true Neolithic henges and stone circles, Stonehenge is in many ways atypical. It is only distantly related to the other stone circles in the British Isles such as the Ring of Brodgar as for example its extant trilithons make it unique.

The site and its surroundings were added to the UNESCO's list of World Heritage Sites in 1986. It is also a legally protected Scheduled Ancient Monument. The monument itself is owned and managed by English Heritage whilst the surrounding downland is owned by the National Trust.

Myths and Legends

"Friar's Heel" or the "Sunday Stone"

The Heel Stone was once known as "Friar's Heel." A folk tale, which cannot be dated earlier than the seventeenth century, relates the origin of the name of this stone:

• The Devil bought the stones from a woman in Ireland, wrapped them up, and brought them to Salisbury plain. One of the stones fell into the Avon, the rest were carried to the plain. The Devil then cried out, "No-one will ever find out how these stones came here." A friar replied, "That's what you think!," whereupon the Devil threw one of the stones at him and struck him on the heel. The stone stuck in the ground and is still there.

Some claim "Friar's Heel" is a corruption of "Freya's He-ol" or "Freya Sul", from the Nordic goddess Freya and (allegedly) the Welsh words for "way" and "sun day" respectively.

Arthurian legend

Stonehenge is also mentioned within Arthurian legend. Geoffrey of Monmouth said that Merlin the wizard directed its removal from Ireland, where it had been constructed on Mount Killaraus by Giants, who brought the stones from Africa. After it had been rebuilt near Amesbury, Geoffrey further narrates how first Ambrosius Aurelianus, then Uther Pendragon, and finally Constantine III, were buried inside the ring of stones. In many places in his Historia Regum Britanniae Geoffrey mixes British legend and his own imagination; it is intriguing that he connects Ambrosius Aurelianus with this prehistoric monument, seeing how there is place-name evidence to connect Ambrosius with nearby Amesbury.

Resources about Stonehenge

Who built Stonehenge? Why?
This ancient monument of huge stones solitarily standing on the Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire, England has captured imaginations for centuries.

The Stonehenge Project
Designed to improve the setting and interpretation of Stonehenge. It will remove the sights and sounds of the roads and traffic from the area near the Stones, recreate chalk downland from arable farmland and transform the visitor experience with better access to the landscape and a new world class visitor centre.

Stonehenge and the Rings of Rock
Stonehenge maybe, in many peoples' minds, the most mysterious place in the world. This set of concentric rings and horseshoe shapes on the empty Salisbury Plain, is, at the age of 4,000 years, one of the oldest, and certainly best preserved, megalithic (that means large, often ancient, stone) structures on Earth.

Secrets of Lost Empires: Stonehenge
What compelling motive drove farmers and hunters of late Stone Age Britain to make such an investment in labor and resources?

Stonehenge: A prehistoric and mysterious circle of upright stones
The stones are aligned almost perfectly with the sunrise on the summer solstice, leading most experts to conclude Stonehenge was built as a place of worship...

Stonehenge, England
The stones are great, And magic power they have, Men that are sick, Fare to that stone, And they wash that stone, And with that water bathe away their sickness.

Stonehenge Then
Contains many theories, None have been peer reviewed. In some instances, Stonehenge somehow is synonymous to the paranormal.

About Stonehenge . Info
Your one stop Stonehenge spot! Pictures, Information, Travel, Legends and lore!

EARTH MYSTERIES: Stonehenge
The megalithic ruin known as Stonehenge stands on the open downland of Salisbury Plain two miles (three kilometres) west of the town of Amesbury, Wiltshire, in Southern England. It is not a single structure but consists of a series of earth, timber, and stone structures that were revised and re-modelled over a period of more than 1400 years...

The Complex & Dynamic Codes of The Station Stones
At the very heart of Stonehenge's geometry are four marked positions called the "station stones". There was, anciently, yet another position, long since eradicated, slightly to the north of the Heel Stone, which seems to have been directly related to the 4 station stones...

The Mystery of Stonehenge
No place has generated so much speculation and wild theories as the standing stones of Stonehenge. After driving for miles through the rolling hills and plains of the English countryside the sight of this unusual structure makes people gasp.

Stonehenge
An ancient stone circle located on the Salisbury Plain in England, about 50 miles west of London.

Welcome to Stonehenge
Stonehenge is one of the most famous and mysterious ruins in the world today. An ancient megalith, or stone monument, Stonehenge has fascinated scientists and lay persons for over eight hundred years.

STONEHENGE: The Building Sequence and Frequently Asked Questions
leading to the theory of Stonehenge...

Stonehenge
Stone Circle, Henge and Standing Stone Wiltshire.

Stonehenge Image Tour
Visitors see today the remains of the final stage of Stonehenge, a prehistoric temple used as a place of worship and burial.

Stonehenge and the time between times
Modern Hengineering my views of Stonehenge, celebrating Northern European folk art from megaliths to modern tribal. A hippy artist's view of Albion.

Astro-Archaeology at Stonehenge
The Revd. Edward Duke was the first person to associate astronomy with Stonehenge, describing it as a planetarium full of significant astronomical alignments - although he named none.