What is buried under Stonehenge?
Diggers in England unearthed two 4,500-year-old graves near Stonehenge. Archaeologists are surveying the area before a car tunnel gets built under the 5,000-year-old monument. The graves contained remains of a young woman and a baby.
Are there bodies under Stonehenge?
Stonehenge is an ancient monument in southern England. It features a ring of massive stones. Underground pits hold human remains. Researchers analyzed some of the remains, which had been cremated and buried around 5,000 to 4,400 years ago.
Was Stonehenge built as a cemetery?
Stonehenge may have been burial site for Stone Age elite, say archaeologists. The first bluestones, the smaller standing stones, were brought from Wales and placed as grave markers around 3,000BC, and it remained a giant circular graveyard for at least 200 years, with sporadic burials after that, he claims.
What caused archaeologists to believe that Stonehenge was a graveyard?
“Stonehenge changed from being a stone circle for specific dead individuals linked to particular stones, to one more diffusely associated with the collectivity of increasingly long-dead ancestors buried there,” the paper concluded.
What was found at Stonehenge recently?
Among the discoveries, the excavation team found burnt flint, grooved pottery, deer antlers, and burials. One grave contained a child’s ear bones and a pot, another a woman, who died in her 20s or 30s and was buried with a unique shale object that may have been part of a club.
How deep are the stones buried at Stonehenge?
3. Some of the stones are even bigger than they look. 2.13m of Stone 56, the tallest standing stone on the site, is buried underground – in total it measures 8.71 metres from base to tip.
How many were buried at Stonehenge?
58 people
In Stonehenge’s early years, ancient people used it as a cemetery. In fact, excavations from 1919 to 1926 revealed the cremated remains of up to 58 people, “making Stonehenge one of the largest Late Neolithic burial sites known in Britain,” the researchers wrote in the study, published online today (Aug.
Why is Stonehenge a cemetery?
New radiocarbon dates of human remains excavated from the ancient stone monument in southwest England suggest it was used as a cemetery from its inception just after 3000 BC until well after the larger circle of stones went up around 2500 BC. …
Why do scholars believe that Stonehenge was a site of ceremonies related to death and burial?
There is strong archaeological evidence that Stonehenge was used as a burial site, at least for part of its long history, but most scholars believe it served other functions as well—either as a ceremonial site, a religious pilgrimage destination, a final resting place for royalty or a memorial erected to honor and …
How did they lift the stones at Stonehenge?
Raising the stones The back of the hole was lined with a row of wooden stakes. The stone was then moved into position and hauled upright using plant fibre ropes and probably a wooden A-frame. Weights may have been used to help tip the stone upright. The hole was then packed securely with rubble.
Does Stonehenge have a purpose?
Are people still making new discoveries at Stonehenge?
Recent excavation has uncovered late Neolithic and Bronze Age artefacts and human remains. Archaeologists excavating at Stonehenge have uncovered prehistoric human remains and ancient artefacts during a recent investigation at the iconic site.
What are facts about Stonehenge?
Stonehenge is a prehistoric monument in Wiltshire , England, two miles (3 km) west of Amesbury . It consists of a ring of standing stones, with each standing stone around 13 feet (4.0 m) high, seven feet (2.1 m) wide and weighing around 25 tons.
What are the theories of Stonehenge?
There are many theories about Stonehenge’s function and purpose from the rational to the irrational to the magical. These range from folklore to aliens to sacrifice to serving as a calendar. The earliest theories about Stonehenge were of mythical proportions.
Why was Stonehenge built?
Why was Stonehenge built? Many experts have put forward reasons, principally related to the seasons and the cycles of the sun and moon . Perhaps less supported have been theories about the stones as a centre for healing or in creating a sound box for drumming or even as a bird perch.
