Just when you thought you knew all there was to teach about Stonehenge suddenly a major discovery turns much of what we had blithely assumed on its head. We now learn that the the six-tonne Altar Stone at the heart of Stonehenge came from the far north of Scotland rather than south-west Wales as previously thought.
The discovery shows the construction of Stonehenge was a far greater collaborative effort than scientists realised, drawing stones from all parts of Great Britain.
The findings suggest Neolithic Britain was a far more connected and advanced society than earlier evidence indicated.
The distance between Stonehenge and the far north of Scotland is about 700km (434 miles), but it remains a mystery how the colossally heavy stones were transported. Was it by land or sea?
So, we can still teach that the remaining stones in the central horseshoe, the bluestones, are from Wales and the larger stones in the outer circle are from England. But as for the altar stone: that comes from Scotland.
