- Stonehenge is surely Britain's greatest national icon, symbolizing mystery, power and endurance. Its original purpose is unclear to us, but some have speculated that it was a temple made for the worship of ancient earth deities
- Of all the world’s famous monuments, none has gained as much of a reputation for pure, simple mystery as Stonehenge
- Stonehenge has been inspiring debate among scholars, scientists, and historians since the Middle Ages
- Stonehenge is located in the English countryside, the landmark is believed to date back to 2500 BC, and consists of several mammoth pieces of rock arranged and piled on top of one another in what appears at first to be a random design
The site is surrounded by a small, circular ditch, and is flanked by burial mounds on all sides
- Although the rock formations that still remain are undoubtedly impressive, it is thought that the modern version of Stonehenge is only a small remnant of a much larger monument that was damaged with the passing of time
- It is believed that the ditch was dug with tools made from the antlers of red deer and, possibly, wood
- It is largely believed that the building process was so extensive that it could have lasted on and off for anywhere from 1500 to 7000 years
- About 2,000 BC, the first stone circle (which is now the inner circle), comprised of small bluestones, was set up, but abandoned before completion
- The stones used in that first circle are believed to be from the Prescelly Mountains, located roughly 240 miles away, at the southwestern tip of Wales
- The bluestones weigh up to 4 tons each and about 80 stones were used, in all. Given the distance they had to travel, this presented quite a transportation problem
- The Neolithic people who built the monument left behind no written records, so scientists can only base their theories on the meager evidence that exists at the site
- This has led to wild speculation that the monument was left by aliens, or that it was built by some eons-old society of technologically advanced super-humans
- All craziness aside, the most common explanation remains that Stonehenge served as some kind of graveyard monument that played a role in the builders’ version of the afterlife, a claim that is backed up by its proximity to several hundred burial mounds
- Another theory suggests that the site was a place for spiritual healing and the worship of long dead ancestors
