Did the Druids Build Stonehenge? | | Live Science
Stonehenge is one of the world’s most iconic and mysterious prehistoric monuments and has intrigued people for thousands of years.Scholars do not know exactly who built it and why, but many believe it to be a religious site. according to the movement of the sun (opens in new tab)But it was just as mysterious Druid —Did an ancient “mediator between men and gods” build Stonehenge?
The short answer is no. It probably wasn’t.Archaeological studies have shown that Stonehenge Built around 4,000 to 5,000 years ago, the earliest records of druids date back to about 2,400 years. Druids may date back a little longer, but experts doubt they were there when Stonehenge was built.
“Druids only appear in the second half of the 1st millennium BC,” Caroline Malone, Emeritus Professor of Prehistory at Queen’s University Belfast School of Natural, Architectural and Environmental Studies, Queen’s University Belfast, told Live Science in an email, long after Stonehenge was built. “There is no confirmed evidence of Druids at Stonehenge. Instead, complex calendrical rituals related to the summer solstice, death, rebirth, and community events take place.” Three of the ritual sites suggest such activities or rituals. ”
Related: Why was Stonehenge built?
There is no evidence linking druids with stone circles. “The classical authors mentioned ancient Druids who worshiped only in wooded groves – no connection is mentioned between Druids and stones. [monuments] Not to mention Stonehenge,” wrote Mike Parker Pearson, Professor of Late British Prehistory at University College London, in a 2013 article published in Archeology International.
This may seem surprising as modern druids identify with Stonehenge and many visit the site on the summer solstice. However, the Druids in existence today do not necessarily follow the same practices as the Druids of antiquity. The ancient druids disappeared in the Middle Ages about 1,200 years ago, but a revival didn’t occur until about 300 years ago.
So why are Druids associated with Stonehenge if there is no evidence linking them to Stonehenge?
“The reason druids are associated with Stonehenge is because druids were pagan priests of England. [written records appear] So when it was discovered that the monument was built in the 18th century by prehistoric Englishmen, the Druids were thought to be responsible,” says Ronald Hutton, professor of history at the University of Bristol, UK. told Live Science in an email. archeologywas built 25,000 years before the age recorded in ancient sources by the Druids,” Hutton said.
Some of the people involved in the revival of Druidism over 300 years ago were also involved in the study of Stonehenge and wanted it to be an important place of worship for the revived Druids. Stonehenge has long been associated with the reinvention of the Druids, antiquarians such as John Aubrey, especially William Stukeley, were central to that movement in the 17th century, making Stonehenge the major shrine/temple of the new movement. We were looking at it,” Timothy Darvill, a professor of archeology at Bournemouth University in England, told Live Science via email.
Demand from publishers also played a role in bringing Druids and Stonehenge together. Stukeley, who studied Stonehenge and other stones in his circle, “couldn’t find a publisher to publish his serious book on his monument to the Henge,” says Malone. . “So he spiced up the story and brought in a druid.RomanMalone wrote, noting that this prompted publishers to print his books, including his so-called study of Stonehenge in 1740.Stonehenge: a temple rebuilt by the English druids (opens in new tab)– What we know today is probably not true.
Originally published in Live Science.
