17th December 2012. Starting almost 3,000 years before the Roman Occupation, that is, about five thousand years ago, this site was gradually developed, over a long period, into the unprecedented structure you see here. Stonehenge! The very word has come to possess some indefinable, mysterious Resonance! Nobody really knows how or why it was built and exactly what purpose it served – other than as a very important place, presumably where people or leaders or nobles got together for some purpose or other. But more prosaically, see Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stonehenge and English Heritage, who are responsible for the site: http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/daysout/properties/stonehenge/ For once, we have included a few people in the shot to give you an idea of the size of the monument.

By some chance, the light was just right in this shot, and these stones look somehow more gritty than ever. This is the first time I have been here for the best part of 60 years. It was but a flying visit, alas. The current English Heritage magazine carries the excellent news that a great new Project concerning Stonehenge will take place. The nearby road will be removed, and a new Visitor Centre built, but quite far away. Then, one will be able to walk (over a mile) towards it, along The Avenue that was, it is assumed, used by the ancient processions to Stonehenge, and approach it as did the Ancients. Transport will of course be provided for those who desire it. This Plan has been developing for decades. Stonehenge is the most important megalithic monument in Europe… but its present-day immediate surrounding are, shall we say, inconvenient, what with a road going right by one of the outlying stones. It’s a long-term and costly project, but a wonderful proof that our National Heritage is properly valued. If we can’t look after Stonehenge – which is metaphorically and literally ‘The Big One’ – how can we look after the tens of thousands of ‘lesser’ assets we are so fortunate to possess in Britain?

(Note added December 2019: The project was completed a few years ago, so check out the website!)

Page written 1st January 2013.