STONEHENGE[ToC]
"Salisbury Cathedral and its neighbour Stonehenge are two eminent monuments of art and rudeness, and may show the first essay and the last perfection in architecture."—Dr. Johnson, letter to Mrs. Thrale, 1783.
Stonehenge is one of those historical monuments which possesses the disadvantage of a reputation. The first impression is always one of disappointment, the circle appears so much smaller than it really is by reason of its isolated situation. Its proportions are dwarfed by the wide expanse of downland which surrounds it. This feeling of disappointment, however, gradually gives place to one of wonder, as the stones are approached more closely, and their bulk is seen in true proportion. The diameter of the outer circle of stones is 108 feet, or almost exactly that of the internal diameter of the Dome of St. Paul's. A casual glance even at the monument is sufficient to show that its basic form is intended to be a circle. The earthwork which girdles the stones is circular and 300 feet in diameter. Within this stands the remnant of a circle of 30 upright stones, bearing imposts upon them; within this again is what was once a circle of smaller stones. Inside these three outer circular forms are two others, shaped like a horseshoe. The first consisted of the five large "Trilithons," huge pylons of stone, comprising two uprights and an impost; standing separate, while in front of them is the remnant of a horseshoe of small upright stones, similar to those which comprise the inner circle of the monument.
Upright stones shaded—Prostrate stones in outline.
At first it may seem difficult to disentangle the chaos of fallen stone which meets the eye; but when once the original design of the structure is grasped, it becomes easy to piece together again in imagination a work which even in the light of modern and scientific engineering presents very considerable difficulties and problems.
Lying flat within these concentric circles and horseshoes is a single flat tabular block generally known as the "Altar Stone." From this slab, now almost buried beneath the remains of a fallen Trilithon, the visitor may look in a north-easterly direction, and through the arches of the outer circle observe the "Hele Stone" or "Friar's Heel," which stands at some considerable distance from the main structure. On the Summer Solstice (or "Longest Day"), the sun rises immediately over the top of this monolith, when viewed from the centre of the Altar Stone.