Stonehenge Hosts Record Crowd for Summer Solstice

Stonehenge Summer Solstice (2015)

A record-setting 36,500 people were at Stonehenge to celebrate the Summer Solstice this past Sunday. Area roads were gridlocked and the main road (A303) was closed due to traffic. English Heritage, the company which runs Stonehenge, said some 6500 cars were parked in the designated visitors' area two hours before dawn. A 200 tent limit in the Avebury Ring was in place, following complaints by neighbors concerning the number of visitors in 2008. There were also more security guards and police than in previous years.

Celebrants danced to Druidic drums in the overcast dawn, while others participated in ceremonies to mark the event. English Heritage issued a warning about drug use (quoted below) and limited alcohol to four cans of beer or one bottle of wine per person. Authorities said there would be a zero-tolerance approach to drug use and drunkenness, but only 37 arrests were made (mostly for drug possession and minor disorder). According to both spokespeople for the company and individual attendees, the event was "enjoyable" and everyone was in a "jovial mood."

Summer Solstice is not a good time to experiment with drugs - the crowd, the noise and the sheer size of the place are likely to make any bad reaction much, much worse.

The event has become more popular since a four-mile exclusion zone around Stonehenge was lifted four years ago.

Though Stonehenge was used for many things by many peoples throughout history, Stonehenge was originally a sundial and calendar, likely constructed by the Hyksos around the same time as the Great Pyramid of Giza.

© C Harris Lynn, 2009

30k Celebrate Solstice at Stonehenge

Some 30,000 people were at Stonehenge over the weekend to welcome the summer solstice.

Many bearing religious leanings were accompanied by those who simply wanted to enjoy the festivities. The turnout was the highest in five years. It was rainy and overcast (but it's England), but the crowd stayed around for the sunrise. All-told, the event was a peaceful one, with only 17 arrests for various public order offenses.

© C Harris Lynn, 2008

Stonehenge: Cemetery

Archaeologists studying Stonehenge have concluded the site is a monumental cemetery, originally for the ruling class.

Going on evidence and data collected over the years, including radiocarbon-dated remains from studies done in the 1950s, the archaeologists suggest Stonehenge was originally a cemetery for royalty and/or the ruling class. They say the theory is bolstered by the number of remains found throughout the ages - relatively few at its dawn, and many more later (suggesting the burial of offspring).

Of course, more mystical theories persist. In particular, one intrepid group of researchers insists it was a site for pilgrimage - most likely one where believers traveled from miles around in hopes of being healed.

© C Harris Lynn, 2008

Stonehenge Vandalized

Two vandals assaulted the Heel Stone at Stonehenge with a hammer and screwdriver, absconding with a coin-sized chip and leaving a large scratch in the structure.

Security spotted the men, who escaped over a fence and drove away. Police have been notified and are looking into the matter. The two men may have been the same that were spotted "acting suspiciously" previously.

This is the first such incident at the site in decades, according to officials. Stonehenge is one of the best-preserved ancient monuments. The damage was minimal.

© C Harris Lynn, 2008

Stonehenge Excavation Begins

The first excavation at Stonehenge in almost 45 years gets underway today.

Headed by two of Europe's leading experts on the site, Professors Tim Darvill and Geoff Wainwright, the excavation seeks to find pieces of the original inner circle of bluestones that are believed to have been the first monument erected on the site. The stones at the center of the structure, are thought to have once been believed magical. Darvill and Wainwright traced them back to their original source - the Preseli hills in Wales - and found that inscriptions at the site show that ancient people believed the stones, area, and waters surrounding them to have been magical.

Darvill and Wainwright have postulated the theory that Stonehenge was built as a sort of "Neolithic Lourdes," where the afflicted traveled in hopes of a Supernatural cure. Further evidence to bolster their claim comes from remains recovered at the site - many of which show signs of trauma and of having traveled a great distance to visit the site.

Their hope is that the dig will show that the original flooring of Stonehenge was placed with bluestone chippings purposely included. This, they believe, will cement their theory as the correct one for why the ancient structure was built.

I, for one, would like to see at least one of the professors twist a coathanger into an ancient shape and aim it at the stones - just to see if it will electrify them. That would be proof of something! Exactly what, I am not prepared to say at this time.

© C Harris Lynn, 2008