Mysterious Sacred Monument: Stonehenge

 

Stonehenge, in Wiltshire, England, is among the most recognisable monuments in the world. The community, formed by stone structures belonging to the Neolithic stone age and Bronze Age periods, is surrounded by burial mounds. Although Stonehenge, which means hanging stones in Old English, is associated with astronomy, geometry and paganism, there is no scientific data on it.

Although claims have been made there as a solar observatory, sundial or UFO landing site related to the construction of Stonehenge, 130 km west of London, it has been found that the area has been used as a cemetery since 5 thousand years ago. It is also proven that the marker stones at Stonehenge, the largest cemetery in England in 3 thousand BC, were used to predict a solar eclipse. Located in the Wiltshire area, 130 km west of London, the capital of England, Stonehenge is one of the most recognizable monuments in the world. There are different opinions about what the purpose of the structure was, which was also used as the background image of computers with the Windows operating system for a period. Stonehenge, considered the oldest temple built by human hands in the world until the discovery of Göbeklitepe, located in Sanliurfa in Turkey, is one of the oldest burial sites in the world. Stonehenge, the largest burial site on the borders of England in 3 thousand BC, consists of at least 5 levels between the Neolithic stone age and the Bronze Age. Associated with astronomy, astrology, geometry, Meteorology, and paganism, the structure proves to have the function of an observation center, where a solar eclipse is followed because sunlight passes through the stones. Each of the smaller pieces of Stone, called bluestones, weighs at least 4 tons. The stones are believed to have been brought from the west of Wales, some 225km away. The Stone, located horizontally on two vertical stones, is 7.3 meters high. It is still an unsolved mystery where, how the stones were brought, and by whom they were placed.

On the British isle, this 900-stone structure is one of the most recognisable Memorial circles on the island and in the world. The purpose of Stonehenge's existence is one of the topics discussed today. This structure, which has no record of its construction and relocation, was widely believed to have been used as a tribal monument. According to available data, the largest of the giant pieces of stone, which were shaped 4 thousand – 5 thousand years ago today, is 9 meters long and weighs 25 tons. The name given to the biggest piece is Searsen. The stones are believed to have been brought from the Marlborough Downs, 32 km north of the area where they are now located. Currently, it takes almost 30 million hours to create such a structure. Some people living in the area have ideas that aliens built the structure. The disappearance and fall of more than half of the mysterious stones also hinders work on the structure. 17 by archaeologist John Aubrey, who conducted research at Stonehenge. according to the theory he put forward in the century, the structure was built by the Druids of the High Priest class of the polytheistic Celts. Today, people who refer to themselves as ‘modern Druids’ celebrate their anniversaries by holding mass at Stonehenge, wearing clothes resembling their ancestors, representing that period. Stonehenge's history going back a thousand years from the Celts refutes this theory.

Stonehenge was on British soil for 2,500 years when the Romans, who went to England 2 thousand years ago, reached England. Even for the Romans, these stones, which mean historical artifacts, form a circle of tons of weight collected on a low hill.

Countless legends and stories have been told throughout history due to the appearance of giant stones in harmony.

The age of Stonehenge, the most famous prehistoric structure in Europe and a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Site, has been determined as 3 thousand BC by recent research. Despite the intervening 5 thousand years, it is not clear how and for what purpose this mysterious structure was built. Stonehenge may have been used as a temple, a healing center, and an astronomy center showing summer and winter acres. How a few tons of stones were transported to this area is still an unanswered question. Stonehenge, 130km west of London, in Wiltshire, sits on a lush, vacant lot stretching across hectares. Apart from a few small villages located around the structure, there are no living creatures, except pigs and sheep that graze. The fact that most of the region is military land, and the organization of exercises at this point, has given life to conspiracy theories.

There is a serious section who believe that Stonehenge, which cannot be made by human hands, was built by aliens and that UFOs come to the area from time to time. 51, located in the U.S. State of Nevada, where no one is allowed to enter. the theory of human communication with aliens attributed to the region is also put forward for Stonehenge. During the first World War, the area, which was designated as a military exercise and training area due to the fact that it was empty and flat, was visited by soldiers who served in those years. The oldest remains in the area where Stonehenge is located date back to 8,500 BC and 7 thousand years. It is known that the people who lived at that time lived in woodlands that were more sheltered. The Britons, who lived in the area thousands of years after these people before the Anglo-Saxon invasion, built the circular ditch, the earliest form of Stonehenge, in the 3 thousand BC, without leaving any written documents. There were two separate entrances to the 100-meter diameter zone. The area, which contained 56 pits where the dead were cremated, is considered to be the largest Neolithic Cemetery in the British Isle. By the 2,500 BC, 40 tons of Heel Stone (Heel Stone) were placed in the region. Inside Stonehenge, which resembles an outer circle, there are trilithons that resemble a door in a horseshoe sequence.

In order to connect the third stone, which is placed horizontally on two large vertical stones, with the other two stones, these stones weighing tons have been made entrance and exit joints resembling Lego. Three of the trilithons of the structure, exceeding 5 meters, are still standing. The largest is 40 tons and the average weight of these stones, which are about 8 meters high, is about 25 tons. The stones are thought to have been brought in by sledges and ropes over a 40km area. Stones placed between sandstones and weighing about 4 tons each, these stones are called Eye stones (blue stone) because they look bluish when wet. The only place where stones can be brought to the area is the Preseli hills of Wales, 320 km from the area, which makes researchers think. How the stones were brought here is questioned, while it is still a thousand years before the production of transport vehicles. The common view is that the stones were pulled down on the Welsh coast with sledges and reels and placed on long boards. During this period, the votive stone in the center and 4 station stones were also placed in the area. A few centuries after the creation of the center (2,200 BC), the eye stones were reorganized and taken into an upright position and made into a horseshoe shape. 43 of these parts are visible today. Bones, tools and finds obtained during excavations in the area offered different contributions to Stonehenge by different tribes. The first traces in the area belong to the agrarian society that lived in the Neolithic period. According to carbon tests, Stonehenge has not undergone a long period of change since the 500 BC. It is also considered that the region has been abandoned. 1. it is believed that Stonehenge became active again with the arrival of the Romans in Britain in the century. The Romans performed rituals in the area and used this place as a cemetery. Stonehenge's inclusion in written sources is first seen in the Middle Ages.

At Stonehenge, until recently, it was possible to approach the stones and take photos with ease. Due to the damage to the stones, the central circle where the stones are located can be approached no more than 5 meters. Special events are held to watch the sunrise and sunset during the solstice and Equinox periods.

For those who want to get closer to the stones, special tours are held before the monument opens or after it closes. To visit Stonehenge, you need to buy tickets from the visitor centre, where the car or bus park is also connected. A shuttle bus with this ticket takes you to the entrance to the monument, a few kilometers from this point. The first stop of the walkway that surrounds the monument is the Heel Stone. After this section, where you can listen to the history of the monument from the audio guide, the service brings it to the museum section, located in the visitor center, where objects found at the Stonehenge World Heritage Archaeological Site are displayed, describing the daily life of people who lived in those years. You can also visit Avebury, another UNESCO World Heritage Site 27 km from this point, while arriving at Stonehenge, complete with a 1-2-hour tour. Avebury, almost the same age as Stonehenge, was one of the main ceremonial sites in Britain during the Neolithic period, built between 2,800 and 2,200 BC. Avebury is today Britain's largest Stone Circle monument.

At Stonehenge, the Sun that arrives at the memorial on the summer solstice aligns with the votive and cut stones at the centre of the circle. The shadow of the Heel Stone also falls on the votive stone in the center. 18. in the century, when William Stukeley discovered this situation, sunrise began to be celebrated here every year on the summer solstice. On the winter solstice, the light of the setting sun glides through the two steep stones of the three-stone structure in the center. Today, celebrations continue on both equinoxes and solstices. Listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site, Stonehenge is considered one of the 7 Wonders of the world built in the Middle Ages. The area, which receives more than 1 million visitors each year, is owned by the British royal family and managed by the palace.