Stonehenge was a healing centre

Carbon-Dating Reveals That Iconic Structure Was Built In 2300 BC

London: For centuries, Stonehenge has fascinated, intrigued and perplexed visitors. But its original purpose has been unclear to people. Many theories surround the purpose of Stonehenge. One suggests the stones were arranged to create an early type of calender to mark the solstices, while another suggests it was a centre of worship.
Now, a team of archaeologists claims to have found evidence that the United Kingdom’s greatest national icon was actually a centre of healing in neolithic Britain, which was built in 2300 BC. Professors Timothy Darvill and Geoffrey Wainwright have based their conclusion after studying a trench excavated inside the stone circle some months back, using radiocarbon dating. The dig unearthed about 100 pieces of organic material from the original bluestone sockets.
A selection of 14 pieces were sent for modern carbon dating at Oxford University, and revealed they dated from “between 2400 BC and 2200 BC”.
“We told the world we were going to date Stonehenge. That was a risk, but I was always confident,” the ‘Daily Mail’ quoted Prof Darvill of Bournemouth University as telling the ‘BBC’. According to the archaeologists, Stonehenge was a centre of healing because they found an “abnormal number” of corpses showing signs of serious diseases nearby and analysis of teeth revealed around half of those who died weren’t native to the area.
“Stonehenge would attract not only people who were unwell, but people who’re capable of (healing) them. Therefore in a sense, Stonehenge becomes ‘A & E’ of southern England,” Prof Darvill said. PTI