An encounter with Stonehenge

Stonehenge – forever a mystery

 By Patrick Matbob

THE mystery that surrounds Stonehenge makes it one of the most fascinating ancient sites to visit in the world today.

No one knows exactly how this ancient monument was built, or by whom and why.

The little that is known today about the site was pieced together by experts from the evidence discovered on site.

Friends Helena and Ivan at Stonehenge

Of course, like PNG there are no shortages of myths and legends associated with the place. A documentary that I watched in PNG some years ago put forward the theory that Stonehenge had alien origins. Seen from above the spectacular shape of the site adds weight to the theory.

So it was with much expectation that I boarded the coach to travel to Salisbury plains for my first encounter with Stonehenge and its mysteries. Our double-decker bus was packed full with foreign students, all with similar intentions, as we left at 8am in the morning. We were warned that it was going to be cold and windy out on the plains so we came all wrapped up in scarves, woollen caps and gloves.

The two hour journey along the meandering A303 was uneventful except for a lot of chatter in typical British fashion about the weather and the latest about Prince Charles and Camilla.

When we finally arrived at Salisbury, it was windy and bitterly cold. Armed with our audio kits we filed out only to be met by howling gusts of wind that blew into our faces and our layers of clothing. Before long we were shivering, more from the cold than awe, as we marvelled at the object of our visit. My first impression of Stonehenge was of a cluster of large slabs of rock, some standing, some on the ground while some pieces lay horizontally above the pillars. We could not get closer because the area had been cordoned off. Operating the audio and taking pictures began to be a problem as it meant exposing our hands to the freezing cold each time. Hearing the story about Stonehenge on the audio was almost impossible against the howling wind on the plains.

Stonehenge is more than 5000 years old and was built over a period of nearly 1000 years. Before it was built, the Salisbury plains were a towering forest of pine and hazel wood which are now completely gone.

Stonehenge was built in three phases. The first was a circle of timbers surrounded by a ditch and banks. The ditch which was wide in diameter was dug using animal bones such as deer antlers which were used as picks, and shoulder blades of oxen or cattle as shovels. Excavations of the ditch have recovered antlers that were left behind and it was by testing their age through radio carbon dating that we now know that the first henge was built about 3,100 BC. Around the edge of the bank there are 56 holes now known as Aubrey Holes, named after the 17^th century antiquarian, John Aubrey, who found them in about 1666. The holes were dug to hold wooden posts, just as holes were dug later to hold the stone pillars that still remain today. The first henge was built about 5,050 years ago and consisted of a wooden post circle surrounded by a deep ditch and bank.

Then about 4,500 years ago (2,500 BC) and about 2,400 years before the Romans set foot in Britain, it was rebuilt. This time bluestones were used which are the smaller stones that can still be seen today. These stones came from the Prescelli Mountains in Pembroke, South Wales, 380 kilometres away. It is believed that the stones were dragged down to the sea, then floated on huge rafts, and brought up the River Avon then heaved overland to where they are today. It is an amazing feat when one considers that each stone weighs about five tonnes. Imagine people hauling huge slabs of rocks from Bereina to Port Moresby 5000 years ago when there were no roads, no ships and no engines!

Before the second phase of Stonehenge was complete work stopped and there was a period of abandonment. Then began a new bigger and better Stonehenge, the one that we know today – this was about 4,300 years ago (about 2,300 BC) when the third and final stage was constructed.

The bluestones were dug up and rearranged and this time even bigger stones were brought in from Marlborough Downs, 32 kilometres away. These giant sandstones or Sarsen stones, as they are now called were hammered to size using balls of stone known as mauls. Each pair of stones was heaved upright and linked on the top by the lintels (horizontal beams). To get the lintels to stay in place, the first wood working techniques were used. They made joints in stone, linking the lintels in a circular manner using a tongue and groove joint, and subsequently the upright and lintel with a ball and socket joint or mortice and tenon. This was all cleverly designed on the alignment of the rising of the midsummer sun.

How did they get these stones to stand upright? The truth is nobody really knows. It required sheer muscle power and hundreds of men to move one of these megaliths, the heaviest of them weighing probably about 45 tonnes.

It's thought that the name Stonehenge originates from the Anglo-Saxon period – the old English word ‘henge' meaning hanging or gibbet. Today the word ‘henge' has a specific archaeological meaning: a circular enclosure surrounding settings of stones and timber uprights, or pits.

Another feature which was built near the stone setting is the Cursus – which lies to the north. It consists of two straight banks and ditches 90-130 metres apart running 2.8 kilometres in length, from east to west. When it was called the Cursus in the eighteenth century, it was thought to be some sort of racetrack. Some people also think that it has a processional ritual use. However, its true function remains a mystery.

Seen from above, the sight is even more fascinating because one can see how the site was designed in perfect symmetry by ancient people without the modern tools and technology we have today.

Stonehenge was formerly owned by a local man, Sir Cecil Chubb, and is now managed by English Heritage. In 1986, it was inscribed as a World Heritage Site.

Many of us came thinking our curiosity would be satisfied and left even more mystified. Like the wise men say, there are many things in life we will never understand. I guess Stonehenge is one of them.

Details of Stonehenge is available at http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/.