Stonehenge

Mystery surrounds this 5,000 year old World Heritage Site. Visit this pre-historic South West monument and decide for yourself whether Stonehenge was designed as a place of sun worship, or as part of a huge astronomical calendar, or something different altogether! An awe-inspiring family visit, Stonehenge is a powerful reminder of the once-great Stone and Bronze Ages. Each phase of Stonehenge was a circular structure, aligned with the rising sun at the solstice. Erected between 3,000 BC and 1,600 BC, the stones were carried hundreds of miles over land and sea, while antlers and bones were used to dig the pits that hold the stones. Modern techniques in archaeology, and the series of recent digs, have helped to shape new theories about the stones, but their ultimate purpose remains a fasinating and enduring mystery.

Stonehenge
View of edge of circle in sunlight (c) English Heritage Photo Library
Elevated view - Elevated view (c) Aerial view in the snow - Aerial view in the snow (c) General view - General view (c) General view - General view (c) General winter view - General winter view (c) Sarsen circle - Sarsen circle with its run of continuous lintels from the north east (c) Stonehenge - View of edge of circle in sunlight (c) Stonehenge reconstruction drawing - Stonehenge reconstruction drawing of Stonehenge as it might have appeared in 1000BC by Alan Sorrell (c) Stones silhouette at sunset - Stones silhouette at midsummer sunset (c) View down to the Sarsen Circle - View down to the Sarsen Circle (c) View of Stonehenge - View of Stonehenge (c) View of stones from the inside circle - View of stones from the inside circle - midwinter evening with snow (c)
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