Stonehenge Essay

Stonehenge is a megalith, or many large stones put together to make a monument. Stonehenge was built between 3100 - 1100 BC, it is located about two miles west of Amesbury, Wiltshire in Southern England. There were two types of stones that were used in the construction of Stonehenge: Bluestones and Sarsen stones. Bluestones= 4 tons, brought from 240 miles away. Sarsen Stones= 18 feet in height and weighted 25 tons. That’s a lot! It took the people 30 million hours. I agree because the stones were quite big and heavy. I will be explaining three theories: domain of the dead, bluestones, and the woodhenge.

Theory 1: Domain of the dead
Stonehenge is known to be a place of the dead- because archaeologists found dead bodies and injured body parts around the Stonehenge circle, but I will get to that later. Now I’ll explain who they found near the Stonehenge burial and why it is known as a domain of the dead. While archaeologists were digging, or excavating and observing the Stonehenge site, they found an injured man who is named Amesbury Archer. They found out two interesting facts about him; 1. He died in the time when the Stonehenge circle was just built 2. He was from the Alps. Now, getting back to my previous point, archaeologists usually find bones and axe heads special material and stuff under the surface. In this case next to the Stonehenge circle, they found dead bodies and injured hands, knee parts, legs, heads etc… That is why Stonehenge is part of the dead, and that’s why it is called that way.
I think that “domain of the dead” is a great way to discover what happened in the past, and how many people were killed or injured. Archaeologists can figure out who was dead and if that person is someone known- as in already discovered or read about, like Amesbury Archer. They date the time they were killed or injured by radiocarbon dating.

Theory 2: Stonehenge- a place of healing
Many people and archaeologists are asking themselves “who built Stonehenge” and “why Stonehenge was built.” Nobody actually knows, but when they figured out that Stonehenge was a place of healing, they then had an idea in their head. Stonehenge is a holy place for calculating dates. But they think Stonehenge was a site for healing, like I said before. Why was Stonehenge built? It was built for people to heal themselves when they are injured. For example if you are sick, you just go the Stonehenge and solve your problem! Why would they build Stonehenge for us in the future today? Most archaeologists thought they would, because they would keep calendars, religious and social events, which makes agriculture better in the future.
"When you enter the building… and cast your eyes around, upon the yawning ruins, you are struck into an exstatic [sic] reverie, which none can describe." That is what William Stukeley said in the 1720’s. This means that when you arrive to Stonehenge and look around, you see something so amazing that no one can describe. That is how I visualize it. Thank technology for allowing us to find out new things about Stonehenge’s purpose! Without technology, 50% of the information we wouldn’t get about Stonehenge!

Theory 3: Woodhenge:
Woodhenge is the opposite of domain of the dead. In fact, Woodhenge is made out of wood. It once included forests with many leaves and flowery green grasses, but now it is plain wood standing high just like Stonehenge. It used to include everything that is living. The Woodhenge site is about 200 ft (57 meters) wide. Woodhenge was discovered in Ohio a few kilometers away from Stonehenge. Examples of living things in the Woodhenge would be Oak timbers.

Conclusion:
I personally think that “place of healing” does not seem true, because, while I was doing the essay I have been asking myself: How can Stonehenge possibly heal a person? What kind of “power” or “magic” does it use? Well, I hope I find the answer to that, because I’m really curious. That’s why I don’t really find place of healing true-not reliable because it sounds fictional. I mostly agreed with a place of the dead, because it is reliable that dead people were buried under ground and some bones too. I found all of these theories interesting, and I do have some questions in mind. Who was building the Stonehenge? How were they building it?-Since they didn’t have such rich material back then like we do today. Why were they building it? People don’t exactly know why, because they couldn’t communicate with people in the earlier days. The most interesting theory to me was Woodhenge. Although I don’t think that is a theory, but it does relate to something once living, which is the opposite of “domain of the dead.”
If I were to sum this whole essay up, it would be: Stonehenge has a variety of theories which are explaining where, when, and why Stonehenge was built.

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