Question about Stonehenge....?

Question

Where are all the missing stones?

Answer 1

CONTRIBUTORS:

Paola Arosio
Diego Meozzi

20 February 2007

Missing Stonehenge stone discovered
A missing stone which could be an integral part of rituals at Stonehenge may have been discovered by a Welsh archaeologist.
Dennis Price, who has done years of research on the mysterious stone structure, believes he has tracked down a previously lost altar stone, identified during one of the first studies of the site in the 17th century. He is convinced it is now in two pieces on either side of a road in a Wiltshire village, just a couple of miles from Stonehenge itself.
Mr Price has studied the archaeology of Stonehenge for years, and in 2003 filmed the excavation of the graves of the Welsh Boscombe Bowmen who helped build Stonehenge. He believes the stones found used to be the altar stone which was named and described by 17th century architect Inigo Jones. Jones, one of his era's most prominent architects, was the first person known to have carried out detailed measurements of Stonehenge in 1620.
The stones are made of Jurassic limestone - found in Dorset and the Cotswolds, but not locally. And the stones, if put together, would look remarkably similar to one in a Victorian woodcut picture he has acquired. Price believes the stone was taken from the site in the Victorian era, when such raids were commonplace.
He said, "We have a woodcut of an easily carved stone with a distinctive shape being cut in two at Stonehenge, and we have accounts of a curious altar stone as described by Inigo Jones being transported to somewhere called St James. We have drawn a blank at the Palace of St James, but when we look at the nearby village of Berwick St James, we find two standing stones that once formed two bridges across a stream, and if we mentally reunite the parts, they bear an uncanny resemblance to the stone in the woodcut.
He added, "On the balance of probabilities, there can be little doubt that Inigo Jones's fabled and once-lost altar stone from Stonehenge now stands in two pieces in a nearby village either side of a small lane, in plain view of anyone who wishes to inspect them.
Dr Julie Gardiner from Wessex Archaeology, a leading authority on Stonehenge, said many stones had been taken from the site. She said, "Lots have been broken up and taken away, especially by the Victorians." She added one 'altar stone' was already accounted for, but admitted there could be more. Dr Gardiner said, "There is a stone called the altar stone, which is still at the site. It's under a larger stone and would have been knocked over when it fell. But a lot of stones have been removed, and may have been given any number of names."

Answer 2

it's interesting, but it seems too focussed on just one thing. There are so many facets to Stonehenge. The weird carvings, more Breton than British, the woodworking techniques in stone, the giant inner horseshoe, the midsummer and midwinter alignments, the hundreds of human remains including a burial in the centre and a young man killed by arrows in the back and buried at the entrance. There have been more digs going on in the area, the largest dig in the world, and loads of interesting stuff has turned up. It won't be known till next year though. Check out the Stonehenge rRiverside project on the net for loads of really relevant stuff which includes the nearby monuments(where the stonehenge people actually lived and feasted) as this is all part of the whole.

Answer 3

Before the 1800's people saw stonehenge as a handy source of building material.
The same thing has happened to a lot of old sites

Answer 4

A very good question? Where are they, assuming that there were more and that the structure was to be or had been completed. Or was it some project which could not be completed? Why what and who (and the silent sentinels keep their secret)? But hey look how much it affects us - curiosity, awe, wonder, puzzlement and even dare I say it? a strange kind of affection (love?).

Answer 5

They were hauled away to make the foundations of houses, same thing happend to the colosseum in Rome and the Pyramids in Egypt

Answer 6

They were used for construction. The problem is much worse at many other megalithic sites, such as Avebury, where much of the nearby village of Avebury is built of the megaliths from the site.

Answer 7

After the puritans pulled it down they were probably used as building material.

Answer 8

I think they were stolen, and no one reported them missing to the police : )

Love & Blessings
Milly

Answer 9

broken down and used on local building

Answer 10

This is one we would all like to know,you find out and your name will live on.This one deserves a star.