Stonehenge Research Paper

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Pages: 3

Stonehenge is a megalithic monument on the Salisbury Plains in Wiltshire, England that was built between 3,000 and 1,500 BCE in several stages. Although Stonehenge was built during the Neolithic Era, it was also used by the Celts around 1,000 to 50 BCE. Even though the purpose of the stones is unclear, they demonstrated an interest in astronomy. Unlike other megaliths “observation and worship of the sun were evident at….Stonehenge]” (Bulliet, Page 18). The stones are aligned towards the sunrise on the summer solstice and the sunset of the winter solstice. It was also aligned with the southern rising of the sun and the northern setting of the moon. This played a role in agriculture and farming because knowing the amount of days in a year …show more content…
In addition to this, the stones were equal in proportion which demonstrates that these prehistoric people had mathematical and scientific knowledge. During the Neolithic era, the people began to explore metallurgy among other early technologies. Due to this, the movement of these massive stones would seem less shocking as they could move them into place by using other stones as counterweights. They also found large amounts of skeletons near the stones which suggests that they were used for religious purposes such as sacrifices.This is supported by the fact that they found a mace head and a bowl which could have been used to burn incense. However most of the bodies that they found had malformations which also suggests that it may have been a spot for healing. This is supported by the fact that they found fragments of the bluestone of Stonehenge with the skeletons which could have been used as talismans for healing. Additionally, there is speculation that the ground that Stonehenge is built on was a burial site beforehand. This is supported by there was 64 complete skeletons found in the 56 pits around Stonehenge, they also believe that some of the taller stones were grave