Listen at 3 different speeds

Neolithic ring of shafts uncovered - 29th June 2020

A circle of deep shafts has been uncovered close to the historical site of Stonehenge, with archaeologists describing the astonishing find as the largest prehistoric structure ever discovered in the UK.

During the early Bronze age, 4,500 years ago, stone or wood circles were constructed by Neolithic peoples, possibly for religious purposes, with the best-known being Stonehenge in the English county of Wiltshire. An incredible feat of prehistoric engineering from a time when only the most rudimentary construction tools were available, many of its stones remain upright. Tourists from across the globe flock to the site in record numbers searching for a glimpse of the distant Neolithic past.

Now, just next to this ancient site, an academic team from various universities has made a startling discovery. Four and a half thousand years ago, the builders of Stonehenge dug deep shafts encircling yet another ancient henge, Durrington Walls, thought to be the site where these workers lived. Each shaft has a drop of 5 metres and measures over 10 metres in diameter. Together, they are thought to have perhaps formed some kind of boundary ring shepherding devout druids to their place of worship.

As Stonehenge and its surrounding area has been pored over, arguably by more archaeologists than any other site in the world, it's surprising that these holes had not been identified before. Only visible thanks to digital archaeology, including ground-penetrating radar, the academics had initially dismissed the shafts as naturally-occurring sinkholes before realising their true nature.

This discovery sheds new light on a society about which little is known, but which clearly operated at a more complex level than previously considered. Having been naturally filled over thousands of years, the shafts are now being excavated in the hope of discovering their purpose.