British researchers think they have solved the decades-old mystery of why ancient Britons transported massive rocks 250 miles from Wales to Salisbury Plain to construct the massive but enigmatic Stonehenge monument: They believed the stones possessed healing powers.
A variety of archaeological evidence, including results from the first excavation inside the monument in nearly half a century, also suggest that the first stones were placed at least 200 years later than previously believed and that the Romans may have altered the stones during their occupation of Britain.
The findings do not conflict with other recent theories about the uses of Stonehenge -- which indicate that it was an astronomical observatory, a cemetery and the site of biannual celebrations that honored the dead and the living. But they do suggest that the monument also was an ancient Lourdes where pilgrims congregated to have their wounds and illnesses magically healed.
Stonehenge has "multiple meanings and multiple uses" that may have changed over the centuries, said archaeologist Mary Ann Owoc of Mercyhurst College in Erie, Pa., who was not involved in the new research. "To limit it to one is an error."
The idea that the stones are not just building materials but have efficacy "is tremendously appealing as an idea," said archaeologist Julian Thomas of Manchester University, who also was not involved in the research. "The idea that they were brought there because they have some kind of power seems to me entirely plausible. But whether it is just about healing is another question."
The new findings were reported in the current issue of Smithsonian magazine and at a news conference today in London.
The monument comprises concentric circles of massive stones, some weighing as much as 50 tons, surrounded by a circular earthen bank and ditch. The largest stones, called sarsens, were quarried about 24 miles north of Stonehenge at Marlborough Downs. The smaller ones, called bluestones because they take on a bluish cast when wet or cut, were imported from Wales at great effort and expense.
Bluestones are thought to possess healing powers, according to medieval literature and folklore, but researchers have assumed that this was a recent association unrelated to the monument's initial purpose.
But archaeologists Timothy Darvill of Bournemouth University and Geoffrey Wainwright, president of the Society of Antiquaries of London, speculated that the tradition had its origin much earlier.
