Stonehenge Case

INTRODUCTION

There is a design of stones at the Salisbury plain in Wiltshire, England. It is one of the most mystifying, fascinating, and unique pieces of architecture that has puzzled scientists and archeologists for thousands of years. It is called Stonehenge. The reason for why this structure was built is still unclear, but most historians agree that it was either built for religious purposes or for astronomical reasons. It could have been used to worship ancient gods or deities. The positioning of Stonehenge could have meant it to be made to mark significant events during that time period. No matter what the reason, the time and effort this masterpiece took, would most defiantly mean that it was built for a special and important reason. Over the years many of the stones fell over or were destroyed. Some people even stole some of the stones. But what is left over and still there represents the true and original Stonehenge.

Stonehenge was created in three stages, the first, second, and third stages. Some people also call them phases. During those three stages, it is estimated that all the labor combined took about thirty million hours to complete. That comes out to 1,250,000 days, 178,571 weeks and 3,424 years. There are all kinds of theories of when Stonehenge was first started to be made. Historians say between 2200 BC and as early as 3000 BC. The first stage started when a large, circular ditch with an elevated area in the middle was dug. It was thought that to dig this ditch antlers from Red Deer were used or just plain old wood. The perfect circle was about two-hundred-eighty-four feet in diameter. There was only one entrance leading into the inside of the circle. In the middle, there was a wooden sanctuary, and outside the edge circle, there were many Aubrey holes. There have been cremated human bones found in the holes, but the holes were probably made for religious purposes. This circle was precisely aligned with the midsummer sunrise and the midwinter sunset. It was also in line with the rising and setting of the moon. Shortly after this was completed, everything was left, untouched, for a long time.

The next time Stonehenge was touched, it became the second stage. It started when an inner circle was made up of small bluestones. It was started but not completed. The stones were set up, but that is it. Those bluestones are believed to be from the Prescelly Mountains at the southwestern tip of Wales. That is about two-hundred-forty miles away. Many of the stones weighed four tons. And in all there were about eighty stones. That is over six-hundred-forty-thousand pounds to drag a very long way. As you could've guessed by now, that was a very large problem to transport the stones that distance. Modern theories guess that the stones were first dragged by a roller and sledge from the inland to the headwaters of Milford Haven. From there, rafts, barges or boats were used and the stones were hauled on those and sailed down the southern coast of Whales, then up the rivers of Avon and Frome and ended up in Somerset. The theory continues that they were hauled overland to a place near Wiltshire which is about six miles from their destination. To get to the final section of their journey they would need to go down the Wylye River to Salisbury, then up another river to West Amesbury. Once completed, it was a small two mile drag to the Stonehenge site. The entrance to the center was also widened during this time period. A pathway leading to the entrance with parallel ditches along the side directing to the sunrise was established. Also during this time, a heel stone was erected outside of the circle. It was used to mark the rising of the sun. The heel stone is mounted northeast of the stone circles. It is two-hundred-fifty-six feet from the center of the circle. Unlike most of the other stones, the heel stone is naturally pointed. That might indicate an earlier date. It is twenty feet long, but four of those feet are buried. It is eight feet wide, seven feet thick, and weighs around thirty-five tons. The second stage was the largest and longest stage out of the three.

The third stage of Stonehenge started at about 2000 BC. This is when the Sarsen stones came. Those stones most