They warned us before we went that a lot of tourists find Stonehenge somewhat underwhelming. Apparently, everyone has such high expectations of it, that when they actually see it, they're not very impressed. Possibly due to this warning, I had reasonable expectations and ended up being extremely impressed! The stones are huge!
The history of Stonehenge is even more amazing. It was long thought that the site was the work of the Druids, a religious cult existing around 250 BC. However, Stonehenge WAY predates the Druids, going all the way back to about 3100 BC. It was built in three stages: 1. A circular ditch and bank are dug and the Heel Stone, is placed outside. The midsummer sun was to rise over the Heel Stone. (3100 BC) 2. Two circles of bluestones were set up inside this bank and ditch. They weigh about five tons each and came all the way from Wales 240 miles away! (2150 BC) 3. A large circle of stones linked with lintels is built. Inside this a horseshoe formation is built. (2000 BC).
What I find the most interesting is that no one knows who built it. No one really knows why it was there. There are some theories. Maybe people came there to be healed. Maybe they came to worship their dead. It certainly has some astronomical and apparently tribal or religious significance. The complete lack of certainty makes the place very mysterious and all the more interesting. Why is it there? Who put it there and where did they go? Why did they drag these massive stones all the way from Wales? What is the significance of that exact location?
At one point, people were carting stones away from Stonehenge for other uses, but it was eventually decided that the site should be maintained. The first recorded foreign visitor was the Swiss Herman Folkerzheimer in 1562 and it has been a tourist attraction every since.
It's kind of cool because it's in the middle of pretty run-of-the-mill countryside. In addition to this, there are two roads running right near it. Imagine driving by Stonehenge every day on your way to work! It was really cool. I was sleeping on the bus and I suddenly woke up and we were at Stonehenge! Anyways, enough about that. Here are some pictures.
This is what Stonehenge originally looked like, or what it various evidence suggests it probably looked like. Note the horseshoe and two circles inside the larger circle.
WOAH! I'm at Stonehenge! I'm even pointing at it.
The stones. I think it's just so awesome! This was also before the rain.
Countryside and SHEEP!
A view of the stones from the other side.
A nice college-student, touristy, American shot at Stonehenge. The weather is also crazy. It will go from being sunny and completely clear one second to raining and really windy the next. Everyone was right. It is really cold and it rains here a lot. But there are periods of nice weather too.
I also went to Glastonbury and visited the Glastonbury Abbey ruins, which are surrounded by a good deal of Arthurian legend and the Glastonbury Tor, which is way on top of a hill and surrounded by beautiful countryside and its own bit of history. But right now, I have a lot of homework. So I'll get to those when I'm done!
No comments:
Post a Comment