Stonehenge 'an ancient sign of the times'

A South African grandmother has spent R300, 000 to publish her book, which she believes proves that Stonehenge in the UK was a prehistoric calendar

Booysen, 66, said this week she examined various ancient structures to prove her theory, including the Chichen Itza Pyramid in Mexico and the world's largest stone circle, The Great Circle at Avebury, in Wiltshire, England.

Booysen said the physical make-up of the various structures, whether the number of steps or the placement of rocks, all added up to 365, representing the number of days in a year.
Archeologists believe Stonehenge was built in three stages but, over the millenniums, the original structure suffered damage as a result of bad weather and pillaging.
Experts have theorised that Stonehenge, about 150km west of London, may be a calendar, a burial ground or a temple.
Booysen has long been fascinated by stone monuments.
"I love a mystery. I've always had an interest in Stonehenge and, for my 50th birthday, my husband sent me to England and I finally saw it. Booysen joined a 'special access' tour with the Stonehenge Tour Company
"It was wonderful. I just knew that it must have some significance. Why would those people drag those stones all the way there?"
Booysen said her interest in a book on Stonehenge peaked after watching a documentary in June 2006 in which it was reconstructed from polystyrene.
She said she hoped her book, available via her website as an e-book, would appeal to academics and those interested in Stonehenge.
She said the book was very technical and contained calculations and diagrams to explain her theory.
"I'd like people to understand that the people who built this monument were absolutely brilliant. It's not just a pile of rocks."

Stonehenge Tour Guide

Stonehenge and the 2012 Olympic deadline

In August 2008 HeritageAction wrote on The Modern Antiquarian that-


In the current edition of British Archaeology there is a two page article by Mike Pitts entitled The Stonehenge Olympics. The first page of the article contains a review of recent plans to improve the visitor facilities at Stonehenge and the second page is a summary of English Heritage’s latest Public Consultation initiative (see http://www.stonehengeconsultation.org/ for details). Mike Pitts makes an interesting point when he says -

“The government announced it was scraping the approved roads scheme on the grounds of cost last December. The day before, the DCMS said it was to give Tate Modern £50m towards its gallery extension, a gesture, it was hoped, that would ensure its opening in time for the Olympics. Now that seems unlikely, as fundraising gets tough, Tate director Sir Nicholas Serota is happy to say that his extension may not be ready till 2014.”
Note the word ‘happy’. Why is Serota happy? Couldn’t be could it that it gives the Tate the necessary time to get the extension right?

I’ve never been happy with tying in new visitor facilities at Stonehenge with the Olympic deadline of 2012 – it seems an impossible objective to achieve in only four years. English Heritage are expected to have their plans in for government scrutiny by the end of this year. The proposals then have to be approved by the government, and planning permission then has to be granted for the preferred site. Each of the sites proposed for the new facilities contain, or are close to, sites of archaeological importance; are these sites to be hurriedly excavated just to meet the government’s deadline for the 2012 Olympics?
Along with billions of other people I watched the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympics on television yesterday; pretty impressive, lots of people enjoying themselves – and why not. I couldn’t help thinking however that it was more than a bit ‘staged’ for world approval. While the Chinese authorities were claiming that this was a ‘green’ Olympics (hmm…) and the unfolding digital scroll showed the progress of the Olympic torch around the world, it somehow managed to omit displaying any of the ‘obstacles’ the torch had encountered along the way. This is nothing more than a selective interpretation of the truth.
What I’m getting at here is that the ongoing shenanigans at Stonehenge seem to have a similar, not to say uncomfortable, feel to them – re: the ‘manipulation’ of public approval. One idea after another for new Stonehenge visitor facilities, tossed out at the obscene expense of the British taxpayer, has achieved nothing to date. Nothing, that is, until now when reputations and personalities are coming under the national and international spotlight of the 2012 Olympic Games.
Stonehenge, perhaps our most important and iconic Neolithic monument, deserves a great deal more than the passing whim of the present (indeed of any) government, let alone the fleeting reputations of those in the political and sporting worlds. It certainly deserves far more than the timeframe dictated by the big Olympic party scheduled for 2012. Let’s take a leaf out of Nicholas Serota’s book and say we’d be happy not to have anything ready for Stonehenge for the Olympics in four years time, but what we will eventually have will be something which Stonehenge, and the people of Britain, deserve and can be rightfully proud of.
It gives me no pleasure to say, “I told you so” but if you read Mike Pitts blog here - http://mikepitts.wordpress.com/ that’s what it’s come to. Mike Pitts writes -
“Also in November English Heritage, having lost the £10m promised by the previous government for the proposed new visitor centre, regained it from the Heritage Lottery Fund. Hopefully now EH will be able to raise the rest of the money it needs: but Stonehenge won’t be ready for the 2012 Olympics, the politicians’ original claim, and instead if all goes well, at that time Stonehenge will be a bit of a building site.”

So, now that the Olympic pressure is off let’s do two things without further delay:

1) Secure finances for first class improvements at Stonehenge.

2) As there is no Olympic deadline to meet anymore let’s get it right. Right being the immediate closure of the A344. Right being a well-designed and aesthetically pleasing Visitor Centre. Right being a practical, and also an aesthetically pleasing, transport system from the Visitor Centre to the Monument.
There can be no more excuses and no more delays – the time has come this time to really get it Right!

Stonehenge Tour Guide

Stonehenge Special Access Visits

Walk Among The Stones At Stonehenge Without The Crowds

When you visit Stonehenge during public hours you have to keep behind a small rope fence about two foot off the ground. For most people this is perfectly adequate.

For those who are really, really interested in Stonehenge it is possible to go beyond the rope fence and walk among the stones.
These visits are called Special Access visits and take place outside public opening hours. This is the only time you will be able to walk amongst the stones at Stonehenge.




Stonehenge Special Access Visits - Key Facts- Special Access visits are available most but not all months of the year, (no visits in October and November and are not available on around the midsummer's day).

- Demand for tickets far exceeds supply, dates are often sold out months in advance. Do not expect to get tickets without ordering well in advance.
- Special access visits take place at quite unsociable hours, commonly between 05:30 and 08:00 in the morning and after 18:30 in the evening.
- Factor in that its almost 2 hours traveling time between London hotels and Stonehenge and you can see such a visit entails a very early start or late finish for those based In London.
- There are no audio guides available and the gift shop and catering outlet are also closed. Only the toilets are open. There is nobody there to tell you anything about Stonehenge and no information is provided - though you can preorder a glossy guide book on ordering your tickets. On morning visits you can wait a little until Stonehenge opens for the public when the gift shop, refreshment kiosk are open and audio guides become available.  Otherwise buy them before - see below
 - The only people there apart from a maximum of 26 Special Access ticket holders are a few security guards who will not provide any information about Stonehenge. They are just there to make sure you get up to no mischief.


Scheduled Special Access Tours From London and Salisbury

A couple of tour companies in London offer tours that include Special Access. This overcomes the logistical problems of getting to Stonehenge early morning or evening when there is no public transport to Stonehenge.

However, its still a very early start or a late return to London and these companies cannot get enough tickets for their needs. As a result dates are very sporadic. Most days there will not be a tour running and they will normally sell out well in advance on those days the tour runs - don't leave it until you arrive in London or you will be disappointed.
The Stonehenge Tour Company have by far the best reputaion and were the original operator to offer this itinerary.  You could try local companies HisTouries UK Tours or Salisbury Guided Tours who opearte bespoke private guided tours.  Needless to say the big group coach companies offer similar tours; Premium Tours, Golden Tours and Evan Evans and you can book discounted tickets here;
http://www.stonehenge-stone-circle.co.uk/coach-tours.htm

IMPORTANT:  The Stonehenge English Heritage shop is closed during these private access visits and you will not be able to purchase guide books or souvenirs so you are wise to buy before.  Needless to say if you do some research before it will certainly enhace your visit, I have listed the the most popular guide books etc below.