The site dates back to 3400BC and consists of a henge, a long barrow, various earthworks and several stone circles. It includes the largest stone circle in Europe, which encircles the village of Avebury - the only village in the world within a stone circle. And yet Avebury is a working village with a manor house, farms, a post office and a pub, among other buildings. The site was saved only in the 20th century, since, like the fate of old structures around the world, the local population had gradually been clearing the land for farming and using the stones for building. Fortunately now it is a World Heritage protected site.
Here are some pics:
The Pub
The village
The henge
The dovecote at the manor
Silbury Hill is a chalk mound adjoining the Avebury circle and the Kennet Long Barrow. It is the tallest prehistoric man-made mound in Europe and one of the largest in the world, the same height as some of the Giza pyramids. Its purpose is still unknown, although it seems to have been built over many centuries and it may simply have been the waste from the earthworks, weathered to its present shape. But, at some 5,000 years old, it remains a somehow moving structure in the middle of the bare countryside.
It's the other way round for me.....I've never been to Stonehenge (unless you count driving past it), but I've been to Avebury a couple of times. I love the place. Great shots :-))
ReplyDeleteTrust you to start with a shot of the pub. This was another fascinating blog for me. Thank you. I need to go to bed. It is after 10 PM here. I am an old fart. Goofnight.
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