Mysterious Stonehenge
The harsh and inhospitable terrain seems plain of Salisbury in southern England. Icy chilly winds blow here all year round. Viewing a blog about travel. found an interesting photo of stone mounds in England. In the Neolithic period, about five thousand years ago, there survived in the harsh conditions the people about whom we know very little. Bronze age people and their descendants left behind something special. It strikes the imagination of mankind even today. Mounds stone rings and megalithic culture produce an indescribable impression.
Stonehenge is one of famous monuments of this culture. This is a special temple of eternity. If you look at the temple from the height of bird’s flight, he will reveal the secret of their structure. Blocks of stone built in the shape of a variety of rings and horseshoes. They are arranged around a Central point. The stone giants are the rampart and a deep ditch. Archaeologists were able to solve the who, when and how built the Stonehenge. Why was this temple built? To this question the answer is still not found.
The construction of this enigmatic structure has lasted two thousand years. This happens to be the year 3000 by 1000 BC. First were erected shaft and mound. Most likely, this meant that the mound was the seemingly sacred ground. Inside the ring could pass through the gate with your exclusive northeast side. A huge monolith stands outside the horse Shoe – the Heel stone.
From about 2100 years before Christ, there began a rapid construction activity. From Wales ancient people brought here blue stone blocks. These monoliths, weighing about five tons, were brought from stone quarries that were located three hundred kilometers from Stonehenge. People dragged them manually, sleigh rides and rafting. The entrance to the ring of Stonehenge is designed so intricately that on the day of the solstice, the sun was rising over the top of the Heel stone.
Today this temple of eternity has acquired about 2000 years before Christ. After a hundred years, the construction of ancient architects changed their plan. The blue rocks were removed and stacked nearby. Instead, they were brought boulders of Sandstone. Their weight exceeded the weight of the previous stones in ten times. The builders were squaring up seven blocks to the required shape. To put one stone of the outer ring, required the efforts of two hundred people. Horizontal stone slabs brought up through a system of levers. Using the hollowed protrusions and recesses hewn vertical and horizontal stones are connected with each other. For five hundred years, were built of stone outer ring of the temple and the inner semicircle. Forgotten blue stones placed inside the building. In the 1500’s outer ring was completed.
After four hundred years, the ancient gods had lost their power over the minds of people and Stonehenge fell into disrepair. What cult of people worship at Stonehenge is not known until now. But, the builders had precise knowledge of astronomy. The sun and the Moon were the main luminaries in their religion. Observations of the planets helped the ancient people to engage in agriculture. They knew when it was time to do sowing and when harvesting. Near this plain were found mounds with rich decoration. It is possible that these boulders are the gateway to the afterlife.
In the middle ages Stonehenge was associated with the magician Merlin and king Arthur. The construction of this temple was attributed to the giants, the Atlanteans, the Phoenicians and the devil. Artists of different eras have portrayed this mysterious place on his canvases. Today Stonehenge attracts druids, the Celtic bards, healers and mystics. Stone ring of Stonehenge are mute witnesses and spokesmen of the ancient past about which we know nothing. That’s why they possesses such ineffable appeal.
