Stonehenge
Stonehenge is a prehistoric monument on Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire, England, west of Amesbury. It consists of an outer ring of vertical sarsen standing stones, each around high, wide, and weighing around 25 tons, topped by connecting horizontal lintel stones. Inside is a ring of smaller bluestones. Inside these are free-standing trilithons, two bulkier vertical Sarsens joined by one lintel. The whole monument, now ruinous, is orientated towards the sunrise on the summer solstice. The stones are set within earthworks in the middle of the most dense complex of Neolithic and Bronze Age monuments in England, including several hundred "tumuli" (burial mounds).

Archaeologists believe it was constructed from 3000 BC to 2000 BC. The surrounding circular earth bank and ditch, which constitute the earliest phase of the monument, have been dated to about 3100 BC. Radiocarbon dating suggests that the first bluestones were raised between 2400 and 2200 BC, although they may have been at the site as early as 3000 BC.

One of the most famous landmarks in the United Kingdom, Stonehenge is regarded as a British cultural icon. It has been a legally protected Scheduled Ancient Monument since 1882, when legislation to protect historic monuments was first successfully introduced in Britain. The site and its surroundings were added to UNESCO's list of World Heritage Sites in 1986. Stonehenge is owned by the Crown and managed by English Heritage; the surrounding land is owned by the National Trust.

Stonehenge could have been a burial ground from its earliest beginnings. Deposits containing human bone date from as early as 3000 BC, when the ditch and bank were first dug, and continued for at least another 500 years.
Q11756
prehistoric
Concept
Q4989906
monument
LOC
Q1472049
Salisbury Plain
LOC
Q23183
Wiltshire
LOC
Q470299
Amesbury
LOC
Q2920343
sarsen
Concept
Q193475
standing stones
Concept
Q1370517
lintel
Concept
Q56490299
bluestone
Concept
Q120312
trilithon
Concept
Q7603898
summer solstice
Concept
Q1349587
earthworks
Concept
Q36422
Neolithic
TIME
Q11761
Bronze Age
TIME
Q34023
tumuli
Concept
Q173412
Radiocarbon dating
Concept
Q56490299
bluestone
Concept
Q6614887
British cultural icon
UNK
Q219538
Scheduled Ancient Monument
Concept
Q587584
site and its surroundings
LOC
Q7809
UNESCO
Concept
Q9259
World Heritage Site
EVE
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the Crown
ORG
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English Heritage
ORG
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surrounding land
LOC
Q333515
National Trust
ORG
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Stonehenge
LOC
Q39671
Stonehenge
LOC
Q39671
Stonehenge
LOC
Q39671
Stonehenge
LOC
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3000
DATE
2000-01-01T00:00:00Z^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#dateTime
2000
DATE
3100-01-01T00:00:00Z^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#dateTime
3100
DATE
2400-01-01T00:00:00Z^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#dateTime
2400
DATE
2200-01-01T00:00:00Z^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#dateTime
2200
DATE
3000-01-01T00:00:00Z^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#dateTime
3000
DATE
1882-01-01T00:00:00Z^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#dateTime
1882
DATE
1986-01-01T00:00:00Z^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#dateTime
1986
DATE
3000-01-01T00:00:00Z^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#dateTime
3000
DATE
+25^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#decimal
25
NUMBER
located in the administrative territorial entity
made from material
made from material
heritage designation
item operated
owned by
heritage designation
owned by