Stonehenge -mystical monument in England
27 January 2020
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Stonehenge is a prehistoric stone circle in Wilshire, England, built over 5,000 years ago. Each stone is around 13ft high, 7ft wide and weighs around 25 tons. It is a World Heritage Site, and one of the most popular prehistoric tourists sites in the world. It attracts around 1.5 million visitors a year, over 50% of whom are from overseas.
There are lots of theories about how these stones got from Wales, where they are believed they came from, to Salisburys Plain. It is believed that there were originally around 30 stones but some have fallen or are missing. There are a lot of theories about the purpose of these stones or monument. Some believe Stonehenge is a sacred burial site, or a place for healing or a site for celestial or astronomical alignment. But nobody really knows.
One of my earliest memories of Stonehenge is that of a place where thousands of people visit to mark the summer solstice. I didn’t think it was a place open to anyone to visit. That is of course not the case. Anyone can visit Stonehenge and admire or ponder the origin and mystery that surrounds it.
As Stonehenge is on my list of “must see” of the top 50 best sites to visit in the world, I included it in my planned route to Cornwall on holiday. The first thing that hits you as you get closer to Stonehenge is the amount of heavy traffic on approach, Stonehenge was close to the intersection of two major roads but what I noticed was that most of the traffic passed through.
It was somewhat disappointing that a considerable amount of time was spent waiting in traffic trying to get to the site. Having already noted that the site has been fenced off and visitors are no long allowed to approach the stones except on the summer solstice. I abandoned my plan to visit it and just took some photos from inside the vehicle. So unfortunately, there is no Mollywozhere photos. However, all the photos included in this blog post were taken by me.
Stonehenge remains a magnificent structure, shrouded in mystery both in terms of its purpose, and construction. The size and scale is mind-blowing.
I hope to return someday to do it justice and explore all that it offers. If you have visited this monument or you are one of the people who visit during the summer solstice, I would love to hear about your experience so please feel free to share.
