Archaeology and legend: investigating Stonehenge

Mike Parker Pearson

doi:10.14324/111.444.ai.2021.09

Abstract

Stonehenge is one of the world’s most famous prehistoric monuments, built 4,500–5,000 years ago during the Neolithic in a time long before written history. The recent dramatic discovery of a dismantled stone circle near the sources of some of Stonehenge’s stones in southwest Wales raises the fascinating possibility that an ancient story about Stonehenge’s origin, written down 900 years ago and subsequently dismissed as pure invention, might contain a grain of truth. This article explores the pros and cons of comparing the legend with the archaeological evidence.

Highlights

Myths and legends have always inspired archaeologists and adventurers: Homer’s Iliad in the search for Troy; the legend of King Arthur in the search for Camelot; or the Greek myth of Minos and the Minotaur’s labyrinth in the discovery of Knossos
The complex relationship between archaeology and ancient legend is fraught with difficulties
One of the earliest recorded tales of ancient Britain relates to the building of Stonehenge

Summary

Introduction

Myths and legends have always inspired archaeologists and adventurers: Homer’s Iliad in the search for Troy; the legend of King Arthur in the search for Camelot; or the Greek myth of Minos and the Minotaur’s labyrinth in the discovery of Knossos. Excavations at Stonehenge in 2008 by a second team, the Stonehenge Riverside Project, produced evidence that the bluestones had been erected much earlier, during its first stage in 2995–2900 bce (Parker Pearson et al 2020, 168, 536), and that the monument had been used as a large cemetery from this time onwards for the 300–600 years (Parker Pearson et al 2009; 2020, 539–43; Willis et al 2016).

Results

Conclusion