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  11.10.00  One day in the winter of 1648, 22 year old John Aubrey finished a day of fun and hunting with his buddies. They decided to return to their homes through a nearby town of Avebury. Avebury is located a little more than 18 miles north of the world-famous Stonehenge in south-central England. As they approached the town, John saw a huge stone standing upright on the outside of Avebury. There was another huge stone standing not too far away...and then he saw another.  They were all around the town! In fact, there where 600 of these huge stones or "Megaliths." No one in the town of Avebury was especially fond of these stones...they were just huge rocks which happened to surround most of the town. But John saw something else...a great prehistoric temple...and he was right!Of all the Megalithic circles that have been found in Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia, and North and South America, this was the largest ever found. In the amazement of his discovery, John said, "[I]t does as much exceed in greatness the so renowned Stonehenge as a cathedral doeth a parish church." Interestingly enough, the same people who built Avebury also built a part of Stonehenge. This is the story of those incredible people. I hope that you enjoy this issue and I'd like to thank Robert Harbison for building these wonderful looking pages. Pete There was an ingenious community of Stone Age people who lived in England 3000 years B.C.E.. These sun worshippers started growing in numbers and flourished in the Avebury area between 2800 and 1600 B.C. They are called The Beaker People. Archaeologists called them this because whenever they found Beaker skeletons, there was always an ornamental pottery urn or 'beaker' beside them which may have held food or drink. Also found among the dead Beakers were thin gold discs with simple decorations that looked like the sun. Although they lived in huts and were mostly farmers, they were intelligent, artistic and radical in thinking. No one knows where they came from: Some say Iberia, while others Central Europe...but wherever they came from, they were different from your everyday Stone Man. After creating their urns, the Beakers colored them brightly with geometric patterns. These sun worshipers did not believe in leaving the dead in a cave, which was the prevailing belief of some ancient people, but instead, left the bodies in open sites under a mound of stones. They also built a non-burial mound called Silbury Hill. Built for unknown reasons, this mound is the largest prehistoric man-made mound in Europe. 
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 One day, about 4,700 years ago, the Beakers began moving huge sarsen stones, which where found locally, to create the "henge" of Avebury. These phenomenal builders worked on the Avebury Henge for centuries and did not stop until it covered over twenty eight acres. The stones were placed in precise order to symbolize meanings--many of which are just now being understood. It is encased on three sides by a 15-foot-high bank, 1,200 feet in diameter, surrounding an outer ditch. Four paths intersect the bank which were probably roadways, providing entrance and exit routes. Three carved faces of stone have been reportedly found on this ancient site. There are also remnants of two or three
small circles. One had a tall stone in the middle  with an obelisk in it. Can you imagine what it was like to move the largest of these stones, which weighs 60 tons and stands around 25 feet tall, let alone the hundreds of other huge boulders it took to make this gigantic temple?  The Beakers were very concerned with the passing of life into the realm of death and built several burial mounds for this reason. One 350 feet long burial mound is called West Kennet Long Barrow. There have been 46 men and women that have been found in this enclosure, some missing their skull and thigh bone. They used this burial mound for many centuries. Later, the Beakers built a false entrance until they finally blocked and closed it in 1600 B.C., after which, they  mysteriously disappeared. Although, there were Beakers also building the second of the three phases of Stonehenge 100 years before West Kennet Long Barrow was closed, they too disappeared mysteriously at about the same time.There are many other fascinating archeological and astronomical creations built by these incredible people, but space on this page does not allow me to cover more. However, if you do get a chance to fly over Avebury you may notice one other thing. You will see that the Beakers made Avebury resemble an encircled cross..which is an important Celtic symbol! Until Next Week, Pete Some links that may be of interest: Avebury World Heritage Site (English Heritage) The Archaeology Division of English Heritage's Conservation Department. Stonehenge-Avebury.Net This web site offers reliable and useful information on Stonehenge and Avebury. The Ancient Sites Directory A Guide To Ancient Monuments Around The United Kingdom Stonehenge.co.uk Tourist Information on historical places in the Wiltshire area. |
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