Stonehenge Builders' Village?
A prehistoric village
has been discovered
in southern England
that was likely home
to the builders of
Stonehenge, archaeologists
announced on January 30,
2007.
Excavations supported by National Geographic at Durrington Walls in the
Stonehenge World Heritage site have revealed an enormous ancient settlement
that once housed hundreds of people.
Archaeologists discovered foundations of houses dating back to
4,600 years ago around the time construction began on Stonehenge.
The floor of House 547 after excavation of its floor deposits,
viewed from the north
.
The project team says these imposing buildings to the west may
have been the homes of chiefs or priests who lived separately
from the rest of the community.
The houses have been radiocarbon dated to 2600-2500 BC, the
same period Stonehenge was built.
A reconstruction made in 2005 depicts one of two timber circles
first discovered 40 years ago near Stonehenge.
Archaeologist Mike Parker
Pearson of Sheffield University
said the discoveries this season help
confirm a theory that Stonehenge
did not stand in isolation but was
part of a much larger religious
complex used for funerary ritual.
http://video.nationalgeographic.com/video/player/news/culture-places-news/stonehenge-village-vin.html