Salisbury Plain, located in the city of Wiltshire in the southern part of England, is home to a very interesting structure with thousands of years of history: Stonehenge. These gigantic stones, thought to have been placed in the region by a mysterious human community thousands of years ago, are filled with information that could completely change what we know about ancient societies! However, the mystery of this interesting structure called Stonehenge has not been solved for hundreds of years.
Here are 10 interesting facts about the ancient and mysterious Stonehenge, one of Britain’s landmarks, that you probably haven’t heard before…
Stonehenge caused a small-scale “war” in 1985!
In 1985, a community called “New Age Travelers” in England wanted to organize a festival in the area where the monument is located. However, state officials responded to this request by banning the festival. On the other hand, travelers who wanted to achieve their goals set out for the area where the monument was located.
According to the records, the brawl that broke out between 1300 police officers and 600 travelers soon escalated and turned into a small-scale war.
The earliest known realistic painting of Stonehenge was made in the 16th century
Flemish painter Lucas de Heere completed the watercolor painting on the site of the monument between 1573 and 1575.
A body was found in 1923 in the area where the monument is located.
This decapitated body was from the 7th century!
Stonehenge is also featured in ancient British legends
Accordingly, one of the most important figures in British mythology, the magician Merlin in the legend of King Arthur, removed the huge stones erected by giants in Ireland and brought them to where they are today. Because there was a bloody war in the area where the monument is located and 3,000 British nobles lost their lives. Merlin, on the other hand, wanted to honor the nobles who lost their lives with this monument.
Stonehenge is also called “The Ringing Rocks”
Because the stones that make up the circular monument have an extremely strong acoustic feature. Some scientists think that the stones were transported from miles away because of these properties.
It is thought that the stones were brought from a distance of about 320 kilometers to the region where they are today.
Considering that each of the stones is at least 4 meters long and weighs tons, it is indeed a great achievement! How the stones were transported is a mystery, like so many other things about the monument!
Stonehenge may have been designed as a cemetery
In 2013, a group of scientists working in the region found bone remains that can be dated to 3000 and 2500 BC. These remains included 50,000 different bone fragments, estimated to belong to 63 different people. For this reason, some scholars have suggested that Stonehenge may have been built as a cemetery.
We have no information about the people who built the monument.
Because this community does not have a written source. This is the main reason for the unknown about the monument.
Human traces at the site of Stonehenge date back to 3100 BC.
It is thought that huge stones were brought to the region for the first time between 2400 and 2200 BC. However, it is estimated that the circular monument, which has become a great mystery today, took its final shape between 1930 and 1600 BC.
Visited by more than 1 million tourists every year
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