Stonehenge
What words come to mind when you think of Stonehenge? Awe? Mystery? Fascination? Fear? Ancient? Probably at least one of those. I’m going to explore why this circle of stones is such a fascination for so many people.
First here are the vital statistics:
Presently the remains of Stonehenge include a henge and horseshoe of sarsen sandstones and bluestones, some which weigh as much as twenty-six tons. Some of the sandstones are topped by lintels, which are called "trilithons."
The name "Stonehenge" means "hanging stones" and was given to the structure by the Saxons.
The megaliths are located in England about 8 miles north of Salisbury in Wiltshire.
When were they built?
Estimated dates of for the construction of the three stages range from 3500 to 1100 BC.
The physical construction of the three stages of Stonehenge is speculative based on the archaeological evidence found after many excavations, and, as it shall be shown the times of the construction of the stages are approximated. Stonehenge I (ca. 3500 to 2300 BC) which consisted of a ditch with two banks, three standing stones, four wooden posts and a ring of 56 holes, called Aubrey Holes, named after John Aubrey, a 17th-century English antiquarian. Within the holes, which measure 2.5 feet to 6 feet in width and 2 to 4 feet deep, chalk was found. They appeared to have been often dug and refilled with cremated human remains. Other Stone Age relics were found in the holes too. The Heel Stone, 20 feet long, 8 feet high, and 7 feet wide was in place. It was the first standing stone.
Stonehenge II (ca. 2150 to 2000 BC) was erected during the time of the so-called Beaker People who did not believe in cremation. During this stage a double circle of 80 giant bluestones, was built within the henge. The entrance was widened, and an avenue was created linking Stonehenge to the River Avon. The discontinuation of the work of Stonehenge II possibly occurred when the Wessex people, powerful and wealthy craftsmen, took over and drove the Beaker People out. This was when the bluestones circle was dismantled.
The final stage of construction or Stonehenge III included three sub stages. The dating of these may be as follows: Stonehenge IIIa, ca. 2100 to 2000 BC; Stonehenge IIIb, ca. 2000 to 1550 BC); and Stonehenge IIIc, ca. 1550 to 1100 BC)
In the first sub stage Stonehenge was shaped as it presently stands. But, also, in the first and second sub stages most of the activity concerned the dismantling and re-erecting of the bluestones. In the first sub stage thirty sarsens were placed in a carefully spaced ring around a horseshoe of five sarsen trilithons in the center. A lone upright sarsen was placed outside of the of the double bluestone circle. It now lies there, but seems to be have been inappropriately named the Slaughter Stone for there is no evidence that it played any part in any executions or sacrifices.
The main event that occurred in the second sub stage was the erection of the Alter Stone, which stands in the middle of the horseshoe.
In the third sub stage the bluestones were once again re-erected. A bluestone horseshoe of 19 stones was built within the trilithons; the remains still stand. There was a placement of bluestones between the sarsen horseshoe and the sarsen circle. Carvings of bronze axes and daggers, symbols of the sun were made in the sarsens. "Boats of the Dead" were hammered into the western stones.
How was it built?
Of course how it was built is one factor that contributes to the mystery surrounding Stonehenge. The estimates I found were based on our knowledge of the people that inhabited the area at the time, and they are amazing. Whether it really was built the logical way it would have had to have been built…or by ‘other means’ it raises the question of WHO built it and to what purpose, which we will get to in a sec ;)
The lintels of the sarsen circle were joined together with such accuracy that it is hardly believable that it was accomplished with the naked eye alone without instruments. The lintels, themselves, had to be raised 20 feet before being placed on the uprights to which they were secured by pre-cut tenon and mortice joints.
Practically speaking such craftsmanship did not coincide with the people living within the area at that time. The inhabitants in Britain around 2000 BC were Neolithic, uncivilized farmers living within small village communities. They neither knew how to use metals nor how to read or write.
The estimations of the number on men that would have been needed to move the 81 sarsen stones makes it seem humanly impossible. Professor Atkinson estimates that with no less than 1500 men, working constantly with only a few days of rest between trips, to move the stones from Avebury to Stonehenge would have taken five and a half years. Professor G.S. Hawkins estimated a quarter of a million to a million and a quarter man-days would have been required to build the third stage. The population to supply such a labor force simply did not exist.
Who built it?
King James I (1566-1625), ordered the first authoritative study of modern times, when instructing his Surveyor-General of Works, and great architect, Inigo Jones to survey the structure to determine how it got there. Jones' first conclusion was that Stonehenge was constructed with such design and beauty that it could not have been built by the Druids as previously thought. The Druids and others of the time were considered barbaric, unskilled people.
Jones concluded that Stonehenge had to be constructed by civilized people who were skilled in architectural design and mathematics. The following obvious conclusion was that the Romans built Stonehenge. But, the speculation of the date of construction of the first stage renders the Roman construction theory erroneous. Stonehenge was or was being constructed practically 2000 years before Julius Caesar set foot on British soil. Although the Roman construction of Stonehenge theory is erroneous this does not invalidate Jones' theory that the structure was built by civilized people. Both the architectural and engineering designs of the structure give evidence of this. The construction was clearly beyond the skills of barbaric man.
Though there is a good body of evidence that Stonehenge and other monolithic sites were used as lunar observatories, this still does not answer the question as to who built them. It has pretty much been established that Britain did not have the skilled population at the time Stonehenge was constructed. There are assumptions that populations to construct these megalithic sites were imported. The first of many of these assumptions is that these imported people were from Egypt. However, the primary objection to this is the age of the oldest megalith, approximately 4000 BC, dates several centuries before the First Egyptian Dynasty and over 1000 years before the first pyramids.
There is even one theory that the builders of Stonehenge, and possibly other megaliths as well, came from the city of Atlantis before it sunk into the sea.
Why was it built?
Going along with the statement that Stonehenge was built by people with highly skilled architectural and engineering abilities is the theory that the structure served as an astronomical observatory. There has been much debate over this issue, but there exists evidence to substantiate the observatory theory.
An astrological observation concerning Stonehenge was made by William Stukeley, an 18th century antiquarian and archaeologist, was that there were two distinct alignments with the sun and moon over the four burial stones, called the Four Stations, and the Heel Stone. The Four Stations have their short sides directed toward the midsummer sunrise, and their long side directed toward the setting of the moon.
Another distinct astrological phenomena of Stonehenge is that a someone standing at the center of the structure on Midsummer Day (June 24) can see the sun rise directly over the Heel Stone.
Myths of the Stones
With the absence of a concrete scientific reason WHY Stonehenge was built, or at least the absence of one that everyone agrees on, a myriad of theories have sprung up in effort to explain them.
One states that the devil was involved in the building. He bought the stones from an elderly woman from Ireland, and used his "magic" to transport them to their current spot on the Salisbury plain in England. He then set them up. He got egotistical, and bet that no one in the nearby village would be smart enough to count all the stones. When asked, a local friar said "that is more than thee canst tell", which means, "That is more than can be told". That was the correct answer. Now the devil was mad, because his plan was foiled. He picked up a stone, and threw it as hard as he could at the friar. The friar thought quickly, and bounced it off of his heel. His heel was so hard that it caused a dent in the stone. To this day the stone is called the "Heel Stone", named by John Aubrey.
As for political legends, Stonehenge is alleged to be the burial place of Queen Boadicea, a gallows for British soldiers in honor of the god Woden*, and a memorial for slain men fighting against the Saxons.
A recent theory concerning the third stage of Stonehenge was that its construction was to celebrate the annual marrying of the gods. The marrying of the god is the celebration of the annual marriage of the Great Goddess and the Sky god. In "The Stonehenge Solution," (1992), Professor G. T. Meaden, Oxford physicist and antiquarian, describes how the consummation of the celestial marriage was ritually acted out by the interplay of light and shade among the standing stones.
According to Meaden's theory, the horseshoe arrangement of the inner-sanctum stones represented the womb of the Mother Goddess. In order to reach it, the rays of the sun at midsummer solstice had to pass the Heel Stone, that had been deliberately set to the east of the avenue, of the monument which represented the Goddess' body. Immediately after an unobstructed sunrise, the Heel Stone eclipsed the sun, forming a shadow representing the phallus of the Sky god.
The long shadow entered the central archway of the main sarsen ring and eventually reached the Altar Stone. Because of particles of mica embedded in it, this large stone glints in the morning sun as the moment of climax occurs when the phallic shadow extinguishes its light. The retreat of the shadow represents the withdrawal.
Her perpetual conception symbolized the renewal of the earth, and promoted a sense of security that the universe, as the ancient peoples knew it, was safe.
Even with the monument in its present semi-ruined condition, Meaden says for a few days around the summer solstice visitors can still witness this fertility ritual, which he maintains Stonehenge was originally built to commemorate.
Another creation myth of the Stone states that dancing giants were circling around on the Salisbury plain. Suddenly and without reason, they were turned into stones. This legend was once popular because of the shape of the megaliths somewhat resembles the shape of giants holding hands.
Another Stonehenge legend states that evil sorcerers once sought to take over the world. The great wizard Blaise tied a magical cord around his powerful oak wand and hurled a binding spell at the dark wizards who were instantly bound into stone.
Personally I like the marrying of the gods theory ;)
*NOTES ON TERMS USED:
- Lintel--A horizontal structural member, such as a beam or stone that spans an opening, as between the uprights of a door or window or between two columns or piers.
- The Beaker People, partially credited with the building with the second stage of Stonehenge, are late Stone Age people who are thought to have emerged around 2200 BC. They were so named by archaeologists because of the brightly colored, geometrically patterned earthenware drinking vessels often found in their graves.
- You can see what a tenon and mortice joint is here http://www.greenwoodworking.com/draw.htm
- For anyone who would like to know more about the god Woden, go here http://www.ealdriht.org/wod.html
Photos
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