The Altar at Center of Stonehenge Came From Over 400 Miles Away

Amaze Lab

At the center of the ancient Neolithic structure lies what is referred to as the Altar Stone. It now rests recumbent, but at one point it made a significant journey all the way from Scotland.

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00:00Stonehenge is one of the UK's great archaeological mysteries.

00:07However, researchers now say they have figured out one new detail about the 5,000-year-old

00:11religious site.

00:12In the center of the ancient Neolithic structure lies what is referred to as the Altar Stone.

00:17It now rests recumbent, but at one point, it made a significant journey, all the way

00:21from Scotland.

00:22For those doing the math, Stonehenge is in the south of England.

00:25Meanwhile, the stone's point of origin is around 466 miles away, quite a journey

00:31for anyone or anything 5,000 years ago, let alone a stone weighing thousands of pounds.

00:36And while this is the furthest any of the stones traveled to get to where they are today,

00:40previous analysis has pinpointed a quarry in Wales, 142 miles away, where several others

00:46originated.

00:47Experts say they have no idea how the massive rocks were transported, saying about the most

00:50recent discovery that these findings are truly remarkable.

00:54They overturn what had been thought for the past century.

00:57The Altar Stone weighs an estimated 6.6 tons, meaning this changes much of what historians

01:02thought they knew about Neolithic peoples, namely that they may have had some means of

01:06marine transportation, and that they had more sophisticated community organization.

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