Megaliths


 * Megaliths **

Megaliths are found all over Europe. Most of the well-known megaliths are on the British Isles, with Stonehenge being the most famous. Megaliths have mesmerized people throughout the ages. They have been around for what seems like forever. Stone henges are limited to Britain, but megaliths are found all over Europe and even in Africa and Asia. Being that Stonehenge is the most famous of all the megaliths there is constant speculation on 'what it all means'. Megaliths are not only mysterious for reasons on why they exist, but how they came to exist. These stones weigh upwards of 50 to 60 tons, and are usually not naturally occurring in the areas they are made into megaliths. (Hayman)In the book "Riddles in Stone" Richard Hayman explains how Stonehenge is shown to be the product of three different phases over a span of 500 years. There are a few different ways that these stones could have come to be, one of them being a waterway system and the other being a combination of wheels (or rollers) and man power. After much research and experimentation, Hayman found that for the man power theory to work it would have taken about 1,100 men to move these stones where they needed to be. That is an extremely large amount of people for this time, not that that many people didn't exist, just that such a large amount of people came together for a common goal. This sparks the thoughts about some kind of social structure during this time that would have given that many people the drive to participate in such a feat. Stonehenge is clearly a testimony to the rapidly developing powers of these prehistoric peoples. (Gardner)  So why do all of this work for some dumb stones? Clearly there had to be a reason behind it all. Many people relate the Druids to Stonehenge in particular and paganism, but we cannot prove that this is true. There are so many megaliths all over the world that there is no way that Druids were the only ones who made them. Megaliths were/are used as shelter, as solar calendars, ceremonial centers and now as tourist attractions. So why were prehistoric people making these gigantic monuments if they were suppose to be primitive and 'uncultured'?

Stonehenge is located on the Salisbury Plain in southern England. It is made with a variation of stones: sandstone, volcanic rocks, and blue stones. Stonehenge has an astronomical background being that if one looks outward at the 'heel-stone' from the center of the complex, could mark the point in which the sun rose at the summer solstice (Gardner). This strange arrangement of stones was believed to have been the work of Merlin in the Middle Ages who (with the help of giants) brought them from Ireland. This is obviously a tall tale, but it makes for a great story. The truth behind the stones probably lies in a type of solar calendar, which it definitely is, but whether this is the only purpose of the henge is unknown. Being able to figure out a calendar is one true basic for intelligence and social structure. They obviously used the structure for marking the seasons in which hunting, migrating, or growing food was the best option for survival.



Aerial View of Stonehenge



Ring of Brodgar Orkney Islands, Scotland

Callanish Lewis, Scotland (Callanish's apex coincides exactly with the Pole Star)

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**Sources **

Nova"Secrets of Stonehenge"  Sources:Gardner's Art Through the Ages: The Western Perspective v1 [|Genesis of Megaliths]

[|Britannia Online]

[|Nova]