Stonehenge 

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For other uses, see Stonehenge (disambiguation). 
Stonehenge, Avebury and Associated Sites* UNESCO World Heritage Site 

Stonehenge is a Ρrehistοήc monument located in the English county of Wiltshire, about 
3.2 kilometres (2.0 rni) west of Amesbury and 13 kilometres (8.1 rni) north of Salisbury. One ofthe most famous sites in the world, Stonehenge is composed of earthworks surrounding a circular setting oflarge standing stones. It is at the centre ofthe most dense complex ofNeolithic and Bronze Age monuments in England, including severa1 hundred bUΉal mounds.[lJ 

Archaeologists had believed that the iconic stone monument was erected around 2500 BC, as descήbed ίη the chronology below. One recent theory, however, has suggested that the fιrst stones 
were not erected until2400-2200 BC,[2J whilst another suggests that bluestones may have been erected at the site as early as 3000 BC (see phase 1 below). The surrounding circular earth bank and ditch, which constitute the earliest phase ofthe monument, have been dated to about 3100 BC. The site and its suuoundings were added to the UNESCO's list ofWorld Ηeήtage Sites ίη 1986 ίη a colisting with Α vebury Henge monument. It is a nationallegally protected Schedώed Ancient 
m •••• 

Monument. Stonehenge is owned by the Crown and managed by English Ηeήtage, while the surrounding land is owned by the National Trust.[3J[4J 

Archaeological evidence found by the Stonehenge Riverside Project ίη 2008 indicates that Stonehenge serνed as a burial ground from its earliest beginnings. [5] The dating of cremated remains found οη the site indicate bUΉals from as early as 3000 BC, when the initial ditch and bank were first dug. Burials continued at Stonehenge for at least another 500 years. [6] 

Map ofWiltshire showing the location of Stonehenge