Ancient village located near Stonehenge

[BoMac]

Stonehenge workers' village found

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Archaeologists have uncovered what may have been a village for workers or festival-goers near the mysterious stone circle Stonehenge in England.

The village was located at Durrington Walls, about two miles from Stonehenge, and is also the location of a wooden version of the stone circle.

Eight houses have been excavated and the researchers believe there were at least 25 of them, archaeologist Mike Parker Pearson said Tuesday at a briefing held by the National Geographic Society.

The village was carbon dated to about 2600 B.C., about the same time Stonehenge was built. The Great Pyramid in Egypt was built at about the same time, said Parker Pearson of Sheffield University.

The small wooden houses had a central hearth, he said, and are almost identical to stone houses built at about the same time in the Orkney Islands.

The researchers speculated that Durrington Walls was a place for the living and Stonehenge -- where several cremated remains have been found -- was a cemetery and memorial. Both are connected to the Avon River by paths they called avenues.

Parker Pearson said remains of stone tools, animal bones, arrowheads and other artifacts were uncovered in the village.

Remains of pigs indicated they were about nine months old when killed, which would mark a midwinter festival, he said.

Parker Pearson said Stonehenge was oriented to face the midsummer sunrise and midwinter sunset, while the wooden circle at Durrington Walls faced the midwinter sunrise and midsummer sunset.

 

[vaz02]

fasinating, its amazing how information such as this is gathered

 

[verte76]

Interesting.

 

[Pearl]

Amazing how much can be found in that location. I think there's so much to learn about Stonehenge

 

[Caroni]

WOW, one of my dreams is go there

 

[Angela Harlem]

It's unreal. I'm easily awed, but Stonehenge is just something else.

 

[susanp6]

Wow! That's sooo fascinating as i've longed to go there!!!!

 

[dazzlingamy]

I loved Stonehenge when I visited. IT seriously has a 'feeling' in the air. I think it is so fascinating finding out about our past - i would love to be on a dig like that!

I took this picture in 2005 whenn I was there!

 

[Greenlight]

I remember as a kid being able to walk right up to the stones and touch them. It's a shame they have to be cordoned off now but it's still a magical place.

 

[Alisaura]

My parents took me to England when I was three; I only have a few vague memories of the trip, but Stonehenge was one thing that impressed my three-year-old self enough to stick.
I'm going back to the UK in August, and I will definitely visit Stonehenge again.

 

[Teta040]

I read somewhere that the rhyme "eenie, meenie, mini, mo" may be the oldest bit of recited poetry in the world, that it came from the builders of Stonehenge, that part of England. "eenie, meenie, mini, mo" is supposedly the first four syllables of a ceremonial and/or astronomical chant that began with counting 1-4. So "eenie, meenie, mini, mo" is "one, two, three, four" and the "catch a tiger by the toe" part and all the rest is the rest of the verse of the chant , all the correct syllables, but the words were lost.

Considering this goes back about what, 5000 yrs, it's amazing. And perfectly plausible to me, I mean "ring around the rosie" is from the Middle Ages and refers to the bubonic plague. But of course we don't remember that. Fascinating that we still have sayings, folk wisdom, etc that is passed down and we don't even remember where it came from .

 

[Effanbee]

I was born in the village of Durrington - Durrington Walls is the Roman name for it. We used to walk from our village to Stonehenge. Greenlight, I can also remember being able to walk among the stones and touch them. As kids we would dare each other to lie on the 'altar stone', it is definitely a magical place even now when it's surrounded by fences.

The 'free festivals' that were held each year at summer solstice were, um, amazing.

The wooden version, Woodhenge, is about a mile from present day Durrington. For anyone visiting that part of the UK, it's worth a trip to Avebury too. There's a huge area of stone circles and avenues, also Silbury Hill close by which no-one has ever worked a purpose for. And a great long barrow (burial mound) which you can go inside.

I really miss those places now I'm in NZ, anyone visiting them please say a little hello from one who grew up there.

 

[meegannie]

I read somewhere that the rhyme "eenie, meenie, mini, mo" may be the oldest bit of recited poetry in the world, that it came from the builders of Stonehenge, that part of England. "eenie, meenie, mini, mo" is supposedly the first four syllables of a ceremonial and/or astronomical chant that began with counting 1-4. So "eenie, meenie, mini, mo" is "one, two, three, four" and the "catch a tiger by the toe" part and all the rest is the rest of the verse of the chant , all the correct syllables, but the words were lost.

Considering this goes back about what, 5000 yrs, it's amazing. And perfectly plausible to me, I mean "ring around the rosie" is from the Middle Ages and refers to the bubonic plague. But of course we don't remember that. Fascinating that we still have sayings, folk wisdom, etc that is passed down and we don't even remember where it came from .

According to the OED, the earliest record in English of "eeny meany..." is dated 1855. The theory that "Ring Around the Rosie" is about the bubonic plague is completely unsubstantiated, so I wouldn't be surprised if the "eeny meany miney moe" theory is just folklore as well.

 

[Alisaura]

The wooden version, Woodhenge, is about a mile from present day Durrington. For anyone visiting that part of the UK, it's worth a trip to Avebury too. There's a huge area of stone circles and avenues, also Silbury Hill close by which no-one has ever worked a purpose for. And a great long barrow (burial mound) which you can go inside.

I really miss those places now I'm in NZ, anyone visiting them please say a little hello from one who grew up there.

One of my childhood friends was born in that area too, apparently you could see Stonehenge or Salisbury Plain at least from the hospital.

I'll definitely take a look at Avebury and Silbury Hill, I love the idea of all those ancient places. Standing stones are just cool. And I'll try to remember to say Hi for you, Effanbee!