Henge

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The three aligned henges of the Thornborough Henges complex A henge is a prehistoric architectural structure !n form, it is a nearly circular or oval" shaped flat area over #$ metres %&' feet( in diameter that is enclosed and delimited by a boundary earth)ork that usually comprises a ditch )ith an external bank The earth)ork permits access to the interior by one, t)o, or four entrances !nternal components may include portal settings, timber circles, post rings, stone circles, four"stone settings, monoliths, standing posts, pits, coves, post alignments, stone alignments, burials, central mounds, and stakeholes *+, -ecause of the defensive impracticalities of an enclosure )ith an external bank and an internal ditch %rather than vice versa(, henges are considered to have served a ritual, rather than a defensive, purpose

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+ .rigin and distribution # Forms / !nterpretation 0 1ee also ' 2otes & 1ources 3 4xternal links

[edit] Origin and distribution

The 5ing of -rodgar, .rkney a possible area of origin for henges 4fforts to provide a direct lineage for the henge from earlier enclosures have not been conclusive6 their chronological overlap )ith older structures making it difficult to see them as a coherent tradition They seem to take the concept of creating a space separate from the outside )orld one step further than the cause)ayed enclosure and firmly focus attention on an internal point !n some cases, the construction of the bank and ditch )as a stage that follo)ed other activity on the site -alfarg, 2orth 7ains and 8airnpapple earlier cremations and deliberate smashing of pottery predate the enclosure There are concentrations of henges over much of -ritain .rkney %8unliffe #$$+( and Wessex %-url +9&9( have both been suggested as the original provenance of the monument type 2either seems likely %-arclay #$$'( :nlike earlier enclosure monuments, they )ere not usually built on hilltops but on lo)"lying ground, often close to )atercourses and good agricultural land 1ome scholars such as the editors of the +9;# version of the Penguin Dictionary of Archaeology, have claimed that henges are uni<ue to the -ritish !sles and that similar, much earlier, circles on the 8ontinent, such as =oseck circle %)hich has no bank in any case( and later ones such as =oloring are not proper >henges> Ho)ever, The Penguin Archaeological Guide, published in #$$+, does not comment on geographical locations for henges

4xcavated henge ditch on Wyke ?o)n %?orset( The ditch )as originally dug as 8ause)ayed enclosure and may therefore not be a henge Julian 8ope@s book The Megalithic European proposes that the henge )as a regional development from the 4urope")ide cause)ayed enclosure, appearing follo)ing a cultural upheaval in around /$$$ -8 )hich inspired the peoples of 2eolithic 4urope to develop more independently He mentions the @rondel enclosures@ of -avaria@s !sar Aalley )hich

according to investigations by the =erman archaeologist 5 A 7aier >dre) comparisons )ith the henge monuments and cause)ayed enclosures of the -ritish !sles> Although still )ith a multiple"cause)ayed ditch and entrances at cardinal points, the roundels are described by John Hodgson as not being positioned )ith defensive aims in mind and the largest, at Bothingeichendorf, appeared to be >mid)ay bet)een a henge and a cause)ayed enclosure> Alasdair Whittle also vie)s the development of the henge as a regional variation )ithin a 4uropean tradition that included a variety of ditched enclosures He notes that henges and the grooved )are pottery often found at them are t)o examples of the -ritish 2eolithic not found on the 8ontinent 8aroline 7alone also states that henges did not occur in the rest of Western 4urope but developed from a broader tradition of enclosure to become a phenomenon of the British Isles, a native tradition with sophisticated architecture and calendrical functions

[edit] Forms
Henges may be classified as follo)s:

Class I henges have a single entrance created from a gap in the bank6 Class II henges have t)o entrances, diametrically opposite each other6 Class III henges )hich have four entrances, facing each other in pairs

1ub groups exist for these )hen t)o or three internal ditches are present rather than one Henges are usually associated )ith the Cate 2eolithic or 4arly -ronDe Age, and especially )ith the pottery of this period: =rooved Ware, !mpressed Wares %formerly kno)n as Eeterborough Ware( and -eakers 1ites such as 1tonehenge also provide evidence of activity from the later -ronDe Age Wessex culture Henges often contain evidence of a variety of internal features including timber or stone circles, pits or burials, )hich may pre" or post"date the henge enclosure They should not be confused )ith the stone circles )hich are sometimes present )ithin them 1imilarly shaped, but larger enclosures are kno)n as Henge enclosures )hilst smaller ones )ith other types of enclosing features are kno)n as Hengiform monuments

Avebury henge contains several stone circles The )ord henge is a backformation from 1tonehenge, the famous monument in Wiltshire 1tonehenge is not a true henge at all as its ditch runs outside its bank, although there is a small extant external bank as )ell The term )as first coined in +9/# by Thomas Bendrick )ho later became the Beeper of -ritish Anti<uities at the -ritish 7useum

1ome of the finest and best"kno)n henges include:

Avebury, about #$ miles %/# km( 2 of 1tonehenge on 1alisbury Elain6 ?urrington Walls near Woodhenge also on 1alisbury Elain6 Bno)lton 8ircles henge complex in ?orset6 7aumbury 5ings in ?orset %later reused as a 5oman amphitheatre and then a 8ivil War fort( 7ayburgh Henge in 8umbria The 5ing of -rodgar in .rkney6 Thornborough Henge complex in Forkshire6 The =reat 8ircle at 1tanton ?re) in 1omerset

-urials have been recorded at a number of excavated henges, both pre"dating the henge and as a result of secondary reuse At Avebury at least t)o very disturbed inhumations )ere found in the central area At Bing Arthur@s 5ound Table, 8umbria, a cremation trench lay )ithin the monument, )hile at Woodhenge a central burial of a child )as interpreted by its excavators as a dedicatory offering Ehosphate surveys at 7axey henge suggested that burials may also have been present )ithin this monument 8airnpapple and 2orth 7ains both had burials before the henge, as )ell as after 1tone circles are also found )ithin a fe) henges, )ith at least six cases identified in 4ngland At Arbor Co) in ?erbyshire, all the stones except one are laid flat and do not seem to have ever been erected as no stoneholes have been found 4lse)here, often only the stone holes remain

[edit] Interpretation
Henges may have been used for rituals or astronomical observation rather than day"to" day activity That their ditches are located inside their banks indicates that they )ere not used for defence and that the barrier the earth)orks provide )as more likely symbolic than functional Follo)ing arguments presented for !rish !ron Age enclosures, -arclay suggested that they are @defensive@: that the ditch and bank face something @dangerous@ inside the enclosure He has also suggested that the considerable range of things surrounded by the earth)orks, and the very long date range, are because henges )ere designed mainly to enclose pre"existing ceremonial sites that )ere seen as @ritually charged@ and so dangerous to people !t has been conGectured that )hatever took place inside the enclosures )as intended to be separate from the outside )orld and perhaps only kno)n to select individuals or groups The alignment of henges is a contentious issue Eopular belief is that their entrances point to)ards certain heavenly bodies -ut henge orientation is highly variable and may have been more determined by local topology than by desire for symbolic orientation 1tatistical analysis sho)ed that 8lass ! henges have a slight tendency to have an entrance set in the north or north"east <uarter 8lass !! henges generally have their axes aligned approximately south"east to north")est or north"east to south")est

!t has been suggested that the stone and timber structures sometimes built inside henges )ere used as solar declinometers to measure the position of the rising or setting sun These structures by no means appear in all henges and often considerably post"date the henges themselves Thus they are not necessarily connected )ith the henge@s original function !t has been conGectured that they could have been used to synchroniDe a calendar to the solar cycle for purposes of planting crops or timing religious rituals 1ome henges have poles, stones or entrances that indicate the position of the rising or setting sun during the e<uinoxes and solstices, )hile others appear to frame certain constellations Additionally, many are placed so that nearby hills either mark or do not interfere )ith such observations Finally, some henges appear to be placed at particular latitudes For example, a number are placed at a latitude of '' degrees north, )here the same t)o markers can indicate the rising and setting sun for both the spring and autumn e<uinoxes -ut henges are present from the extreme north to the extreme south of -ritain and so their latitude could not have been of great importance Formalisation is commonly attributed to henges6 indications of the builders@ concerns in controlling the arrival at, entrance to, and movement )ithin the enclosures This )as achieved through placing flanking stones or avenues at entrances of some henges, or by dividing up the internal space using timber circles While some )ere the first monuments to be built in their areas, others )ere added to already important landscapes, especially the larger examples The concentric nature of many of the internal features, such as the five rings of postholes at -alfarg or the six at Woodhenge, may represent a finer distinction than the inside"out differences suggested by henge earth)orks The ordering of space and the circular movement suggested by the sometimes densely"packed internal features indicates a sophisticated degree of spatial understanding 8arhenge is either a modern parody or artistic tribute to the famous 1tonehenge structure