There have been many myths about Stonehenge, how it was built and the purpose it served. Following today’s discussion in class, I saw a new article about Stonehenge and thought I would discuss it here.
First, the article does state that the theory was created by an individual who is not an archaeologist and other people in the field say there is no evidence behind his theory. With this, the new theory must be critically analyzed before conclusions can be made about its accuracy. The theory was created by a man named Julian Spalding who is a historian from the United Kingdom. His theory is that what are left of Stonehenge are giant stilts and these structures were used to hold a platform that was for ceremonial purposes. This would have allowed the leaders during this time period to not touch the ground saying these ceremonies were too sacred to be performed on the earth directly. These theories are published in his new book called Realization: From Seeing to Understanding- The Origins of Art.
While these new theories are very interesting, there must be more research done before any conclusions can be made and facts can be separated from fiction. The sources of information are very important and here the source must be questioned. Spalding is a historian rather than an archaeologist. Therefore, his perspectives and background information may lead to different conclusions than those an archaeologist may find. In addition, there is no other information given which discusses why he came to these conclusions so there is no evidence given for his theories. These questions must be answered in order to understand the basis and accuracy of these new theories.
More directly related to the first short lecture on Stonehenge, there are a few new realizations I had. I had always thought of Stonehenge as the sole structure of study. I did not realize the vast network of other smaller sites of study that surround the actual Stonehenge structure. This suggests Stonehenge as the center of a greater population center. This is an example of a theory with strong evidence as support. The physical evidence of other mounds, earthworks and woodhenge show that Stonehenge was more than just the actual structure itself. Theories such as the one stated above do not necessarily have the same concrete evidence and therefore require further research and evidence to prove as true. This theory may turn out to be indeed true but at this point, should not be taken as fact without more information and knowledge.
After class Wednesday, I was very interested in what other crazy theories around Stonehenge are out there and what people think Stonehenge’s purpose is. I think that Julian Spalding’s theory about the structure we see now were actually stilts for a platform that is no longer there is very interesting. Although he has no archeological background, it is easy to understand where his theory developed. The stones are placed in a circular formation and are all close to the same height so if the laborers were skilled enough, it would be possible to place a platform on the top. I would be curious to see what material Spalding thinks the platform would be made of or when it was built.
It would be interesting to see if Spalding could provide greater evidence as to why he believes his theory was accurate and why he thinks he has the credibility to convince others of his ideas. I think that it was very important to note that he is a historian with no proof to back himself up, but I would like to know why he believed that the builders of Stonehenge had ceremonies that were believed to be too sacred to be performed on the ground. This is a fairly specific idea that must come from somewhere.
I liked how you pointed out that the part of Stonehenge we think of today is not the sole structure. It is important to note that the structure was continuously changed over thousands of years and could have been used for many different purposes. Although there is no evidence to prove Spalding’s theory, there is a very small possibility that archeologist do not know each Stonehenge’s altered structures.