High-tech lasers have been used to unlock the secrets of Stonehenge. The work at the ancient site in Wiltshire has already uncovered two carvings which are invisible to the naked eye. The carvings of bronze axe heads are between four and six inches long. Similar markings were found at the site in the 1950s, but archaeologists say these are now too badly eroded to be seen. The research by Wessex Archaeology and 3D laser scan firm Archaeoptics began in the summer of 2002. They used a low-powered laser beam to scan the stones without causing damage to the structure. Three stones have been scanned to date, and the investigating team insists a full survey of all 83 would probably reveal more carvings. "The laser scanning has opened up a whole new way of seeing Stonehenge," said Tom Goskar of Wessex Archaeology.

"With more time we could uncover many more and make plainer the outline of some known carvings that are difficult to see. "This would give us a much better idea of the extent of the carvings and help us achieve a greater understanding of the monument."

View: Full Article | Source: BBC News

Hmmmm good idea and glad to hear it won't damage the stones.

I saw a theory once on richard and judy (stop laughing), apparently it was a large wooden structure, and the stones were like the frame of the building. The dude said it was a temple for the sun with a hole in the top like a hop house to light up the building at a particular time of the day...>_>

More on Stonehenge's laser 'art gallery'

Lasers reveal Stonehenge's 'art gallery'

Enigmatic carvings of bronze axe heads, that are invisible to the naked eye, on one of the weathered stones at Stonehenge have been revealed by laser scanning.
The stones, moved into their final positions in one of the world's most famous ancient monuments some 4,300 years ago, would already have been 500 years old when the axes were carved. Bronze tools and weapons were only introduced centuries after the Wiltshire farmers made the giant stone and earth circles using antler picks and cow bone shovels.

The purpose of the newly revealed carvings is another of Stonehenge's mysteries, although similar carvings are associated with burial sites in other parts of the country. It has been suggested that whatever Stonehenge's original function, it was later used for burials and became a memorial to the dead.

The team of scientists and archaeologists has scanned only three of the 83 surviving stones, and believes a whole gallery of prehistoric art is waiting to be discovered on other stones in the circle.

Carved axe heads and a dagger were first recorded on another of the stones in 1953, but they have weathered so much since then - possibly from curious people running fingers along the outline of the carvings - that they are now barely visible.

The stones were scanned with low-powered laser beams, and the data analysed and computer-enhanced by a joint team from Archaeoptics of Glasgow and Wessex Archaeology. The archaeology unit has recently made spectacular discoveries in the Stonehenge region, including the Archer with his wealth of Bronze Age grave goods. The technique has been used before on stone monuments, but never to recover such faint details as in the Stonehenge carvings.

Mike the Pitts, editor of British Archaeology and an expert on the history of the site, said: "It is extraordinary that these carvings, the most significant art gallery from ancient Britain, have still not been properly studied 50 years after their first discovery."

A full description of the experiment is in this week's issue of the journal.

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[FONT=Arial][COLOR=red] w[COLOR=red]when did thet find this out i dont know .when it was found,

OK people, let's stick to understandable contributions, please. The two posts above are, in my opinion, considered verbal diarrea and "posting for the post".

So, well, please don't do that.

Thank you.

I don't think I want to know what they are for! I think it's better left a mystery. If we solve all the "mysteries" then what are we gonna do with our spare time. Some things are better left unknown!

When we go to the ends of the earth,the ends of the universe,when we reach the end of existence,you will realise how pointless your journey was,you left nothing a mytery,what would there be to look forward to people,there would be no reason for being here.leave stonehenge alone,leave it a mystery. [FONT=Courier][SIZE=7][FONT=Times][COLOR=blue]