Stonehenge

Welcome to Stonehenge, 2000 BC.

This site has already been a place of worship and learning for the last 1000 years.

Let's take a look around at the major features.

The Sarsen Circle	The outer sarsen circle consists of 30 uprights, topped by 30 lintels. Each upright weighs up to 25 tons, and each lintel weighs 7 tons.
The Trilothons	5 trilothons are set out in the form of a horseshoe. They are graded, rising from 6 1/2 to 8 metres in height. Each of the uprights weighs up to 45 tons.
The Great Trilothon	The Great Trilothon is over 8 metres high. At Winter Solstice, the sun can be seen setting between its stones.
The Half-Size Stone	One of the sarsen uprights is a Half-Size Stone. This means that the sarsen circle really consists of 29 1/2 stones. 29 and a 1/2 is the number of days between one full moon and the next. Also, viewing from the centre of Stonehenge, and looking past the Half-Size Stone, the direction is due South, around which the heavens appear to turn.
The Bluestones	There are 2 circles of Bluestones, one outside the Trilothons, and one within the Trilothons. These Bluestones weigh up to 7 tons each, and were brought from the Presceli Mountains in Wales by raft and sledge.
The Altar Stone	The Altar Stone was placed in the centre of the site as a focal point for all astronomical observations.
The Heelstones	The Heelstones are 2 huge sarsen marker stones. On midsummer's day, by standing in the middle of Stonehenge, the sun can be seen rising between them.
The Aubrey Holes	The Aubrey Holes around the perimeter are 56 round pits one meter wide and deep, here represented for visibility by round plinths.
	The Sun, Moon and Node Stones are moved progressively from one Aubrey Hole to another, in order to predict sun and moon eclipses.
Station Stone North	Station Stone North is the base for many sightlines, but one of the most spectacular is the Summer Solstice Sunset, viewed from Stone G.
Station Stone East	Most southerly moonrise viewed from Station Stone North to Station Stone East.
Station Stone South	Most northerly moonset viewed from Station Stone South to Station Stone West.
Stone G	Stone G provides the sightline for the Winter Solstice Sunrise.
Stone C	Stone C provides the sightline for the Equinox Sunrise.
Stone B	Stone B provides the sightline for the Equinox Moonrise.