What Is Stonehenge The huge stone circle of Stonehenge in southwest England is one of the most well-known monuments of the prehistoric world But why was it built Every year people gather at Stonehenge to watch the sun rise on the summer solstice the longest day of the year They believe the stones were erected as a kind of calendar They think the farmers who built the monument used it to follow the movement of the stars in the sky throughout the year A modern-day druid celebrates the summer solstice at Stonehenge 4
The movements of the stars told them when it was the right time to plant their crops or when to hold special rituals Archaeologists do not know if this is true There are many theories about the purpose of Stonehenge No one knows which is correct Preseli Hills Stonehenge IN CONTEXT Salisbury Plain Stonehenge stands on Salisbury Plain a plateau that covers about 300 square miles 780 sq km The grassy plain is home to many early buildings As well as Stonehenge early people built burial mounds called barrows stone circles and earthworks such as Durrington Walls on the plain Much later in the 500s bce Iron Age peoples built hilltop forts there Only parts of the monument still stand upright Other stones have fallen down over thousands of years 5
How and Who In many ways Stonehenge does not seem mysterious The stone circle is huge It can be seen from miles away But the monument’s size does not make it easier to understand Experts have studied Stonehenge for centuries They have found out a lot about how it was built They have learned about the farming people who built it on the plain outside the modern town of Salisbury Today archaeologists use the most up-to-date techniques to analyze the monument They hope that learning more about the stone circle will reveal more about why it was built Could It Be True What are other theories about Stonehenge One of the strangest ideas is that it was built by people from the lost city of Atlantis The huge statues on Easter Island were thought to have been built by aliens 6
What Is Stonehenge The hanging stones are the flat stones across the top of the upright stones Atlantis was a legendary ancient city that was said to have disappeared beneath the ocean To date there is no evidence that Atlantis ever existed Another theory is that Stonehenge was a landing site for alien aircraft The pyramids in Giza Egypt and the statues of Easter Island in the Pacific Ocean were also said to be the work of aliens What’s In a Name The name Stonehenge means hanging stones in the language of the Saxons The Saxons were some of the earliest inhabitants of Britain 7
