Bluehenge
Bluestonehenge or Bluehenge (also known as West Amesbury Henge) is a prehistoric henge and stone circle monument.[1] It was discovered by the Stonehenge Riverside Project about 1 mile (1.6 km) southeast of Stonehenge in Wiltshire, England.
Original monument
[change | change source]Originally, there may have been as many as 27 stones in a circle 33 feet (10 m) wide. The stone circle settings were surrounded by a henge, comprising an 82-foot-wide (25 m) ditch and outer bank which appears to date from approximately 2400 BC.[2]
There are no pictures of Bluehenge, because the only parts of it that still exist are underground. The ditch and a series of stone settings still exist, but they are not visible above ground.
Excavation
[change | change source]The site was excavated in August 2008 and again in August 2009. It is considered an important find by archaeologists.[3][4]
Excavation revealed two flint chisel arrowheads in a style commonly used between 3400-2500 BC. The stones were put up during that period.
Bluestones
[change | change source]The name "Bluestonehenge" is from the small stone chips found in some of the stone settings. These bluestones are also found in Stonehenge and consist of a wide range of rock types originally from Pembrokeshire, West Wales, some 150 miles (240 km) away.[3][5] Archaeologists think any bluestones in the circle may have been removed around 2500 BC and used at Stonehenge, which had a major rebuilding at about that time.[2]
References
[change | change source]- ↑ Historic England. "West Amesbury Henge (1580342)". PastScape
- 1 2 Archaeologist at University finds 'Bluestonehenge' site. Sheffield University. Archived 2020-11-12 at the Wayback Machine
- 1 2 "Mini-Stonehenge find 'important'". BBC. 3 October 2009. Retrieved 3 October 2009.
- ↑ Newhenge, British Archaeology 110, January / February 2010, ISSN 1357-4442
- ↑ Derbyshire, David 2009. Bluehenge unearthed: prehistoric site that could be famous stone circle's little sister. London: Daily Mail.