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Archaeology & History

Stonehenge was originally built in Wales

By T.K. Randall
December 7, 2015 · Comment icon 16 comments

Stonehenge may have switched locations. Image Credit: CC BY 2.0 Simon Wakefield
A new study has indicated that the famous Neolithic monument was not always situated in Wiltshire.
For thousands of years Stonehenge has dominated the Wiltshire countryside, but back when it was first built its surroundings may have actually been very different.

Archaeologists conducting excavations near the Preseli Hills in Pembrokeshire have discovered holes cut in to the rocks which seem to exactly match the stones that make up the monument.

The holes date back as far as 3,400 BC and suggest that the stones may have originally been part of a different monument before being taken down and dragged off to become part of Stonehenge.
"It could have taken nearly 500 years to get them to Stonehenge, but that's pretty improbable in my view," said Professor Mike Parker Pearson. "It's more likely that the stones were first used in a local monument, somewhere near the quarries, that was then dismantled and dragged off to Wiltshire."

The Stonehenge monument we see today therefore might actually be a second-hand construction.

"Normally we don't get to make that many fantastic discoveries.," said Pearson. "But this is one."

Source: Independent | Comments (16)




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Recent comments on this story
Comment icon #7 Posted by third_eye 8 years ago
The first major druid convention ? ~
Comment icon #8 Posted by pallidin 8 years ago
Well, I suppose the slabs traveled from somewhere off-site, obviously a quarry originally. But why would the original slabs, up to 500-years later, be moved from one location to an entirely different location that we now call Stonehenge? That would be a lot of work. Not saying at all that it's not possible. An overzealous land owner/king/warlord/chieftain/whatever? Or maybe it was felt that then eventual location we know today was somehow more favorable (spiritually, hill obstructions, etc)
Comment icon #9 Posted by acute 8 years ago
Seen one stonehenge, seen 'em all.
Comment icon #10 Posted by aquatus1 8 years ago
I wouldn't be surprised if the original scenario was a little more something along these lines: "Oy, Alreic! Did ja see what Kimrik's tribe built up on their land?" "Aye, that silly wooden circle? What of it?" "They said it was fer fertility dances! And that we didn't have any because it wouldn't help us anyhows!" "What?! That pansy little...Hah! If wood is all they need, we'll show them what it takes to survive being one of our fertility circles! Does yer brother still have that quarry?"
Comment icon #11 Posted by Calibeliever 8 years ago
This story brought to you by the Welsh PR Council
Comment icon #12 Posted by SiliRat 8 years ago
Could they have built it near the quarry to work out the details and ensure proper fit before tearing it down and reassembling it at the permanent site?
Comment icon #13 Posted by Sir Wearer of Hats 8 years ago
Built by whales would have been more interesting.
Comment icon #14 Posted by aquatus1 8 years ago
The whale fertility dance loses something in interpretation when brought on to land.
Comment icon #15 Posted by Black Monk 8 years ago
Wouldn't it make more sense to suggest there might have been two such monumental sites, and the one in what is now Wales was dismantled and the stones reused locally (not transported to Wiltshire) after the culture that built the two sites disappeared? It's already a well-known fact that the stones which make up the inner rings of Stonehenge came from what is now Wales. We know this because they are made of Preseli Bluestone, and Preseli Bluestone is ONLY found in the Preseli Mountains of Pembrokeshire in south west Wales. So the stones were somehow transported 135 miles east to Salisbury Plai... [More]
Comment icon #16 Posted by Calibeliever 8 years ago
It's already a well-known fact that the stones which make up the inner rings of Stonehenge came from what is now Wales. We know this because they are made of Preseli Bluestone, and Preseli Bluestone is ONLY found in the Preseli Mountains of Pembrokeshire in south west Wales. So the stones were somehow transported 135 miles east to Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire. True, no one disputes that... but the whole "we built it here first" thing seems a bit shaky.


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