The Stonehenge at Salisbury Plains has been shrouded in mystery even before the time of Christ, but the truth of the matter is that nobody truly knows how this monument came to be. The origins of this monument range from logical theories to totally far fetched science fiction and middle age theories. This site has been around for over 4 millennia, but before the stones were even erected or on British land, it was used as a burial site. Then comes the weird theories, like Merlin from the King Arthur tales using his powers to move all of the stones into their formation or extraterrestrials coming down from outer space and giving knowledge to the ancient people in the area. Aside from these theories that lack any form of logical reasoning, the most widely accepted theory is that the monument was created as a religious shrine for the Druids of the area.
The Stonehenge is not shrouded in mystery just because they are huge stones weighing multiple tons in a circular formation, but that nobody truly knows when the formation came to be. Many archaeologists have opposing views on who created this monument, like Edomond Bolton credits it to the Celtic Queen Boudicca, which would make sense by the cremated remains found at the site. One of the most widely accepted ideas though is that the Druids of the time resurrected Stonehenge. Inigo Jones first said that Stonehenge was not the works of the Druids, but John Aubrey contradicted this by saying otherwise (“Stonehenge and the Druids”). Aubrey’s opposing views were recorded in his book “Monumenta Brittanica” where he calls Stonehenge a “Templa Druidum” (“Earth Mysteries: John Aubrey”). Many other people took up Aubrey’s conclusions to the creator of Stonehenge, like William Stukeley, but an...
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...help them build Stonehenge as well as other mysterious architectural pieces of the time (“Solving the Riddle of Stonehenge’s Construction”).
Although people may never know the true origins of Stonehenge, the main reason that it is so popular is because of the mystery surrounding it. A UFO landing site? A memorial brought forth by sorcery? This famous landmark has gained tremendous fame over thousands of years by the lack of knowledge we have of it. The most sensible theories like the Druids building it for religious ceremonies or as a burial site have taken the attention away from the more far fetched ones. This is why Stonehenge is a truly fascinating subject, because it has not been truly decoded. Aldous Huxley gives a perfect parallel to the mystery of Stonehenge, “There are things known and there are things unknown, and in between are the doors of perception.”
Hills, Catherine M. “Beowulf and Archaeology.” In A Beowulf Handbook, edited by Robert Bjork and John D. Niles. Lincoln, Nebraska: Uiversity of Nebraska Press, 1997.
The Stonehenge (in England), carries with it thousands of legends and stories, yet through “modern scientific methods of “dating”” we can assume that it was built in what we call the “Prehistoric Times” (The Master Minds of Stonehenge 2); specifically, the Neolithic period which is where the “transition from foraging to farming” is first evident (The Climatic Origins of the Neolithic Revolution: Theory and Evidence 2). Although we cannot determine the exact reason for this transition a truly likely theory is the alteration in climate. This new climate brought upon the process of settling; through time agriculture became advantageous. With the knowledge of these facts the dating of the Stonehenge becomes more accurate.
Stonehenge is located in Southern England on what is known as the Salisbury Plain. The structure looks different than it once did, however. Today, Stonehenge suffers the effects of time and pernicious acts by people. Originally, in the years after completion, the structure was made up of “several concentric circles of megaliths, very large stones.” (5) Stonehenge consists a circular layout of approximately one hundred megaliths. On the tops of them another flat stone was placed to make a continuous ring of horizontal stones. These structures are known as trilithons.
The Parthenon is an amazing Greek temple that was built 2,500 years ago. Even the architects of today have numerous questions about how it was constructed and how it has held up through its eventful past. The Parthenon's detailed appearance is not its only meaningful quality. The Parthenon was constructed as a temple to the goddess, Athena, and as an icon of the Greek people themselves. The Parthenon represents the Greek ideals of humanism, idealism, and rationalism.
Stonehenge is one of the words greatest mysteries as we have limited definite knowledge of its origins, its meaning or how the mighty stones were lifted. The only thing we can ever be entirely sure about is the location of Stonehenge. This is because radiocarbon dating on the stones shows us that Stonehenge came from around 5000 years ago - a time period before writing and recording information. There are many different theories behind the creation of Stonehenge and its significance – still today; historians do not have evidence to show who built it. Stonehenge has always been one of the words biggest questions, therefore leading to large amounts of speculations from different scientists, historians and archaeologists. But first we must know what a henge is, according to Dictionary.com a henge is “a Neolithic monument of the British Isles, consisting of a circular area enclosed by a bank and ditch and often containing additional features including one or more circles of upright stone or wood pillars: probably used for ritual purposes or for marking astronomical events, as solstices and equinoxes.”
The world has many unsolved mysteries that baffle even the most intelligent minds. One particular mystery, though, has remained truly unsolved. This mystery is the Easter Island heads that were built by people using primitive tools and manpower. Why is this mystery so puzzling and have we any clue about how the people of Easter Island accomplished this amazing task? Well, there are numerous facts, theories, and unanswered questions to be discovered. The following evidence further explains why and how the Easter Island people built the great stone carvings.
This sarsen circle enclosed five standing sarsen trilithons that were placed in a horseshoe plan (Lawson 1997). Approximately thirty kilometres north of Stonehenge, residing on the Marlborough Downs, rests a quarry. It is from this locale that the thirty massive sarsen stones are suspected to be brought from (Morner and Lind 2015). Of all the sarsen stones, eight are perceived to contain prehistoric carvings (Lawson 1997). The stones that have the most clearly visible engravings “…are representations of unhafted axe blades, probably indigenous flanged bronze axes… it seems most likely that these carving were added after the erection of the stones” (Morner and Lind 2015:
(Source: flint) Soon, three large wooden posts were erected possibly to mark the uniqueness of the area or to mark the migration patterns of the animals they hunted. Stonehenge was continually occupied through the Mesolithic era and into the Neolithic. At this point the earth had warmed up significantly and England became an island, leaving those living there isolated. With the rise of the Neolithic came different customs. Long barrows were built to bury the dead. Within the Stonehenge landscape many long barrows were built and the area slowly became more open. Peoples moved into the area and began to farm and settle down. They began to alter the landscape as more people came to settle there. At this time, around 5500 years ago, the Greater Cursus was created. The Greater Cursus is a 2-mile-long piece of land surrounded by a trench. 500 years later, Stonehenge was built. The first aspect was the surrounding trench and the pits just within. 500 years later the inner horseshoe and circle were erected. In the next 300 years the horseshoe would be rearranged multiple times and the Avenue, a 2-mile path to the River Avon, was
Human began to revolutionize away from hunting and gathering. Human life begin toward agriculture. During this period was where monumental sculpture began. It started with skull restoration. There were now more human painting instead of animal. There was a lot of megalithic found during this time. Megaliths. (Great stone) was using for honoring the death. There were all unique arrangement of megaliths also known as Stonehenge. Stonehenge it was actually a big, ancient calendar designed to keep track of time and important astronomical events. However, it could had been representation of religious shrine. Majority of the Stonehenge pointed to where the sun rise. Could it mean that they believed in higher being and rebirth? The most famous megalithic monument in Europe is Stonehenge on the Salisbury Plain in southern England. A henge is an arrangement of megalithic stones in a circle. Could had been some kind of ritual? Even today we still can guess of all the possibility. Art has millions of meanings, there is no one right
One of the most famous and mystic monuments of all times sits on Salisbury plains in England. Isolated out in the middle of an open area, built before there was a written language the monument Stonehenge challenges our minds and imaginations. With over half a million visitors each year, debates are brought to life and the mysteries and speculations that surround Stonehenge. Built in early B.C. it took four stages over multiple years and decades to complete. The first stage was a series of ditches that formed multiple circles and dirt was piled on these ditches to make massive mounds. The second, third, and fourth stages were all completed by different circles of people. These people all brought different stones from across all areas of the
Archeology goes hand and hand with the study of the great epic poem Beowulf. Generally considered the oldest surviving peace of English literature, Beowulf obviously has many ties to historical sites and areas of archeological discovery. In recent years, these close ties to these sites have allowed historians, archeologist, and literary critics a new and unique view at the poem, which has allowed new information to be uncovered about both, the poem and Anglo-Saxon culture. New knowledge has been discovered particularly in the areas that were most important to the people living in this era, which were, warfare, the giving and receiving of treasure, and their beloved mead halls.
The evidence in regards to this topic is the embodiment of subjectivity. While it does provide an detailed overview of events such as the circumstances about how Lord Elgin was able to gain permission to transport the Parthenon marbles, the documentation is either bias or flawed. An example is how Lord Elgin has been viewed when he “liberated” the Parthenon marbles off the walls to be taken to his estate through the use of blackmail. The previous statement was a common opinion of British and Greeks citizens who saw Elgin as a thief who only wanted the marbles to put on display in his home. Alternatively others who favoured Elgin’s actions, viewed him as a hero who sought to enhance the cultural diversity of Britain. Both these interpretations are gross exaggerations on Elgin but they have had an impact on modern opinions on the Parthenon Marbles.
Stonehenge is without a doubt the most interesting monument in Europe. The ring of stones standing in the open vastness of Salisbury Plain is an evocative image of wonder and mystery. (Scarre, 130) Stonehenge is both traditional and unique in Britain colorful history. It is traditional in that it falls within a whole class of monuments characterized by circular banks and ditches, or by rings of standing stones. Its uniqueness is engulfed within the size of the stones, the complexity of their arrangement, and the balancing of the lintels atop the uprights. There are three other major monuments in Britain, and while they don't receive the same consideration as Stonehenge, they too entice much scrutiny. While the unique characteristics of Stonehenge only help to intensify its marvel, the ambiguities of its intention pose questions that today are still not answered. This essay will discuss monumentality as it compares to the four major henge enclosures in Britain. The monuments, namely Stonehenge, Avebury, Marden, and Durrington Walls, will be used in conjunction with discussing what purposes monuments can serve, as well as what the remains of a site can tell us about the culture of a society.
In my opinion, based on my understanding from the Stonehenge article and the video in class, the meaning behind the Stonehenge monument was used to perform sacred rituals. People somehow wanted to know where the deity is so they created an idea of a place to connect with the deity and honor the lives that were lost by doing a burial in the monument. These sacred rituals were used to connect with each other out of respect and remembrance of the lives that were lost during those times. Stonehenge was constructed around 3100-2300 BCE and I suppose that people during those times were more connected to a deity. People must have perform these sacred rituals because it was to believe that the deity could honor the lives that were lost. Overall, Stonehenge
Monuments are a symbol of a significant time in history. Monuments represent life, death, success, and struggle just to name a few. They have become as important to society as the events they represent. They bring history alive to new generations and memories to those who experience them firsthand. Monuments create a bridge between generations. Many parents feel a certain indescribable joyfulness when they see the look in their child’s eyes they had went they viewed the same monument.