SALISBURY, England – Stonehenge often appears in these pages, most frequently of late in regard to the proposed restructuring of the A303 road which runs past the site, but there’s some other news this month as well and in this column, we’ll be looking at an intriguing new discovery about an integral aspect of this ancient site – and, more frivolously, at the revival of the Stonehenge dahlia festival.
New theories about the Stonehenge altar stone
A hundred years after Herbert Henry Thomas published his theories on the Pembrokeshire origins of Stonehenge, a new investigation has suggested that the 16-foot altar stone might come from much further afield than even the Preseli hills – which themselves lie around 180 miles away from Salisbury Plain. Richard Bevins, honorary professor of Geology and Earth sciences at Aberystwyth University, has suggested in an article in the Journal of Archaeological Science (with co-author Rob Ixer from University College London) that although Thomas was broadly correct in his assertion that the stones came from the Preselis, the altar stone arguably did not. This is part of an ongoing exploration by contemporary archaeologists on Thomas’ findings: in 2018 the Wild Hunt reported on contentions by Professor Mike Parker Pearson that the Stonehenge bluestones came from a different area of the Preselis than that suggested by Thomas.
Bevins says, “Thomas grouped the Altar Stone with the other foreign stones, calling them the ‘Blue Stones.’ But the Altar Stone is anomalous in its size, weight, and rock type, and there is no evidence for when the Altar Stone might have arrived at Stonehenge…the bluestones are thought to have arrived ca 2950 BC during the Stage 1 construction period.”
The Altar Stone is larger than the surrounding stones and as mentioned above, is formed from a different kind of rock. Bevins suggests that it may also have been brought in at a later date. So if the stone doesn’t come from West Wales, where does it come from?
Stonehenge [Photo Credit: MJTM]
Geologists sampled the geochemistry and mineralogy of 58 sandstone outcrops across Wales and Southern England but failed to find a match with the Altar Stone. The latter contains a high concentration of barium, and this may enable researchers to pinpoint its origins with greater accuracy: the north of England and even Scotland have been suggested. Potential sites of interest include the Old Red Sandstone of the Midland Valley and Orcadian Basins in Scotland or ancient deposits in Northern England. The team say that they will be guided by archaeological expertise from researchers involved in these areas who have been studying the Neolithic occupation.
The team, which has been working on the composition of the Altar Stone since 2009, told the press that “it is time to broaden our horizons, both geographically and stratigraphically into northern Britain and also to consider continental sandstones of a younger age… It might be that the Altar Stone arrived later and if so might have been brought from another area than Wales and also possibly by different people. This thinking was something of a game changer and led us to ‘uncouple’ the Altar Stone from the bluestones from Wales and led to our ‘broadening horizons’ approach.”
The Wild Hunt will continue tracking these investigations and will report back if there are any significant developments.
Dahlia festival
What’s the first thing that comes to mind when you think of Stonehenge? The origins of the Altar Stone? The majestic trilithons rising from Salisbury Plain? The thought of ancient Celts performing arcane rites? Modern white-robed Druids celebrating the solstices? It is fair to say, however, that dahlias are probably not your initial reaction when England’s most famous monument is mentioned, and yet dahlias and Stonehenge have been in the news recently.
This – like so many events at the henge – is a revival, but not one that dates back to the ancient builders of the monument. The dahlia festival was a highlight of the Wiltshire year during the 1840s, when up to 10,000 people arrived at the henge in order to peruse the magnificent blooms being displayed, and also take part in other entertainments such as listening to a brass band and watching a cricket match. Somehow, this seems quintessentially English, and we’re pleased to report that the dahlia festival, after a considerable hiatus, took place again in September 2023, organised by the National Dahlia Society.
Dahlia in Manny’s garden (and totally unrelated to Stonehenge) [Photo Credit: S. Ciotti]
Louise Crawley, English Heritage landscape historian, told the Guardian: “The shows were an opportunity for people to gather and parade in their finery. It is wonderful to see these beautiful flowers return to Stonehenge after 180 years.”
The festival did not take place within the monument itself, but inside the site’s replica Neolithic village near the visitors’ centre. In times gone by, we assume that it would have been situated within the monument – which must have been an exciting sight with the juxtaposition of the brightly-coloured blooms with the craggy stones. Now, with concerns not only about the safekeeping of the stones themselves but the lichen that grows on them, the festival does not involve the monument itself, although some enterprising florists have created a trilithon made of dahlias. Visitors had the opportunity to pose in front of the stones, however, wearing floral headdresses from London florist UFLO (Unidentified Floral Object).
Gardening writer and podcaster Arthur Parkinson told the press:
“The heroes for me are the single and anemone varieties, which literally give life to a garden, brimming as they are with nectar and pollen for our precious pollinators.”
The original event on 31 August 1842 was popular although the event only lasted there for 4 years before it moved elsewhere. The local press reported at the time that:
“The extreme novelty to selecting Stonehenge for a dahlia exhibition, and a delightful sunshine, attracted, as was expected, most of the fashionables of the neighbourhood to the spot. Such a scene of gaiety was never before witnessed on Salisbury Plain … Parties of gentlemen and elegantly dressed ladies were scattered about in all directions.”
Although presented as an upper-class event, the Dahlia show was popular with all. John Keynes, honorary secretary of the Salisbury Plain Dahlia Society, won a prize for a dahlia representation of the Antrobus coat of arms. Now, many hope that its revival becomes a permanent feature of the horticultural year.
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