Trip to Stonehenge

Stonehenge is one of the nice travel destinations of prehistoric monument located in the English county of Wiltshire, about 3.2 kilometers or 2.0 miles west of Amesbury and 13 kilometers or 8.1 miles north of Salisbury. One of the most famous sites in the world, Stonehenge is composed of earthworks surrounding a circular setting of large standing stones. It is at the centre of the most dense complex of Neolithic and Bronze Age monuments in England, including several hundred burial mounds.

Archaeologists had believed that the iconic stone monument was erected around 2500 BC, as described in the chronology.  One recent theory, however, has suggested that the first stones were not erected until 2400-2200 BC, whilst another suggests that bluestones may have been erected at the site as early as 3000 BC. The surrounding circular earth bank and ditch, which constitute the earliest phase of the monument, have been dated to about 3100 BC. The site and its surroundings were added to the UNESCO's list of World Heritage Sites in 1986 in a co-listing with Avebury Henge monument. It is a national legally protected Scheduled Ancient Monument. Stonehenge is owned by the Crown and managed by English Heritage, while the surrounding land is owned by the National Trust.

A new landscape investigation was conducted in April 2009. A shallow mound, rising to about 40 cm or 16 inches was identified between stones 54 inner circle and 10 outer circles, clearly separated from the natural slope. It has not been dated but speculation that it represents careless back filling following earlier excavations seems disproved by its representation in 18th and 19th century illustrations. A shallow bank, little more than 10 cm or 4 inches high, was found between the Y and Z whole circles, with a further bank lying inside the Z circle. These are interpreted as the spread of spoil from the original Y and Z holes, or more speculatively as hedge banks from vegetation deliberately planted to screen the activities.