Editing Stonehenge (section)

===Archaeological research and restoration===
[[File:Stonehenge - Wiltonia sive Comitatus Wiltoniensis; Anglice Wilshire (Atlas van Loon).jpg|thumb|17th-century depiction of Stonehenge from the ''[[Atlas van Loon]]'']]

====1600–1900====
Throughout recorded history, Stonehenge and its surrounding monuments have attracted attention from [[antiquarians]] and [[archaeologists]]. [[John Aubrey]] was one of the first to examine the site with a scientific eye in 1666, and, in his plan of the monument, he recorded the pits that now bear his name, the [[Aubrey holes]]. [[William Stukeley]] continued Aubrey's work in the early eighteenth century, but took an interest in the surrounding monuments as well, identifying (somewhat incorrectly) the Cursus and the Avenue. He also began the excavation of many of the barrows in the area, and it was his interpretation of the landscape that associated it with the [[Druids]].<ref>Stukeley, William, 1740, ''Stonehenge A Temple Restor'd to the British Druids''. London</ref> Stukeley was so fascinated with Druids that he originally named [[Disc barrow|Disc Barrows]] as Druids' Barrows.
 
[[File:Constable - Stonehenge, 1629-1888, 2006AK8142.jpg|thumb|left|As painted by [[John Constable]], 1835]]
The most accurate early plan of Stonehenge was that made by Bath architect [[John Wood, the Elder|John Wood]] in 1740.<ref>Wood, John, 1747, ''Choir Guare, Vulgarly called Stonehenge, on Salisbury Plain''. Oxford</ref> His original annotated survey has now been computer-redrawn and published.<ref name="Johnson, Anthony 2008">{{cite book |last=Johnson |first=Anthony |date=2008 |title=Solving Stonehenge: The New Key to an Ancient Enigma |publisher=Thames & Hudson |isbn=978-0-500-05155-9}}</ref>{{rp|195}} Importantly Wood's plan was made before the collapse of the southwest trilithon, which fell in 1797 and was restored in 1958.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Greaney |first=Susan |date=2018-05-29 |title=Excavation and Restoration: Stonehenge in the 1950s and 60s |url=https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/inspire-me/blog/blog-posts/excavation-restoration-stonehenge-1950s-60s/ |access-date=2023-10-01 |website=English Heritage}}</ref>

[[William Cunnington]] was the next to tackle the area in the early nineteenth century. He excavated some 24 barrows before digging in and around the stones, discovering charred wood, animal bones, pottery and urns. He also identified the hole in which the Slaughter Stone once stood. [[Richard Colt Hoare]] supported Cunnington's work and excavated some 379 barrows on [[Salisbury Plain]] including on some 200 in the area around the Stones, some excavated in conjunction with [[William Coxe (historian)|William Coxe]]. To alert future diggers to their work, they were careful to leave initialled metal tokens in each barrow they opened. Cunnington's finds are displayed at the [[Wiltshire Museum]]. In 1877, [[Charles Darwin]] dabbled in archaeology at the stones, experimenting with the rate at which remains sink into the earth, for his book ''[[The Formation of Vegetable Mould Through the Action of Worms]]''.{{citation needed|date=July 2020}}

Stone 22 fell during a fierce storm on 31 December 1900.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.silentearth.org/restorations-at-stonehenge-2/ |title=Silent Earth: Restorations at Stonehenge |website=www.silentearth.org |access-date=30 July 2020 |archive-date=7 August 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200807135801/http://www.silentearth.org/restorations-at-stonehenge-2/ |url-status=usurped }}</ref>

[[File:stonehenge 1877.JPG|thumb|An early photograph of Stonehenge taken July 1877]]
[[File:Stonehenge on 27.01.08.jpg|thumb|The monument from a similar angle in 2008 showing the extent of reconstruction]]
[[File:Stone Henge 1920 restoration - newspaperphoto.jpg|thumb|A contemporary newspaper depiction of the 1920 restoration]]

====1901–2000====
[[File:Stonehenge from the air - Philip Henry Sharpe (Royal Engineers) - 1906.jpg|thumb|upright|Stonehenge from the air. Taken by 2nd Lt Philip Henry Sharpe in Summer 1906 from a [[Royal Engineers]]' [[tethered balloon]].]]

[[William Gowland]] oversaw the first major restoration of the monument in 1901, which involved the straightening and concrete setting of sarsen stone number 56 which was in danger of falling. In straightening the stone he moved it about half a metre from its original position.<ref name="Johnson, Anthony 2008"/> Gowland also took the opportunity to further excavate the monument in what was the most scientific dig to date, revealing more about the erection of the stones than the previous 100 years of work had done. During the 1920 restoration, [[William Hawley]], who had excavated nearby [[Old Sarum]], excavated the base of six stones and the outer ditch. He also located a bottle of [[port wine|port]] in the Slaughter Stone socket left by Cunnington, helped to rediscover Aubrey's pits inside the bank and located the concentric circular holes outside the Sarsen Circle called the [[Y and Z Holes]].<ref name="SiiL">{{cite web |last=Cleal |first=Rosamund |title=Y and Z holes |work=Archaeometry and Stonehenge |publisher=English Heritage |year=1995 |url=http://www.eng-h.gov.uk/stoneh/yz.htm |access-date=4 April 2008 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20090228211449/http://www.eng-h.gov.uk/stoneh/yz.htm |archive-date= 28 February 2009|display-authors=etal}}</ref>

[[Richard J. C. Atkinson|Richard Atkinson]], [[Stuart Piggott]] and [[J. F. S. Stone|John F. S. Stone]] re-excavated much of Hawley's work in the 1940s and 1950s, and discovered the carved axes and daggers on the sarsen stones. Atkinson's work was instrumental in furthering the understanding of the three major phases of the monument's construction.

In 1958, the stones were restored again, when three of the standing sarsens were re-erected and set in concrete bases. The last restoration was carried out in 1963 after stone 23 of the Sarsen Circle fell over. It was again re-erected, and the opportunity was taken to concrete three more stones. Later archaeologists, including [[Christopher Chippindale]] of the [[Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, University of Cambridge]] and Brian Edwards of the [[University of the West of England]], campaigned to give the public more knowledge of the various restorations and, in 2004, English Heritage included pictures of the work in progress in its book ''Stonehenge: A History in Photographs''.<ref name="emmayoung">{{cite magazine |last=Young |first=Emma |title=Concrete Evidence |magazine=[[New Scientist]] |issue=9 January 2001 |url=https://www.newscientist.com/article/dn310-concrete-evidence.html |access-date=3 March 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100923160924/https://www.newscientist.com/article/dn310-concrete-evidence.html |archive-date=23 September 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Taverner |first=Roger |title=How they rebuilt Stonehenge |work=[[Western Daily Press]], quoted in Cosmic Conspiracies: How they rebuilt Stonehenge |date=8 January 2001 |url=http://www.ufos-aliens.co.uk/cosmicstonehenge.htm |access-date=3 March 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080309014637/http://www.ufos-aliens.co.uk/cosmicstonehenge.htm |archive-date=9 March 2008 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Richards |first=Julian C.|author-link = Julian C. Richards |title=Stonehenge: A History in Photographs |publisher=English Heritage |year=2004 |location=London |isbn=978-1-85074-895-3}}</ref>

In 1966 and 1967, in advance of a new car park being built at the site, the area of land immediately northwest of the stones was excavated by Faith and Lance Vatcher. They discovered the Mesolithic postholes dating from between 7000 and 8000 BC, as well as a {{convert|10|m|adj=on}} length of a [[palisade]] ditch&nbsp;– a V-cut ditch into which timber posts had been inserted that remained there until they rotted away. Subsequent [[aerial archaeology]] suggests that this ditch runs from the west to the north of Stonehenge, near the avenue.<ref name="SiiL" />

Excavations were once again carried out in 1978 by Atkinson and John Evans, during which they discovered the remains of the [[Stonehenge Archer]] in the outer ditch,<ref>{{cite news |title=Stonehenge execution revealed |work=BBC News |date=9 June 2000 |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/784348.stm |access-date=4 April 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080413233350/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/784348.stm |archive-date=13 April 2008 |url-status=live}}</ref> and in 1979 [[rescue archaeology]] was needed alongside the Heel Stone after a cable-laying ditch was mistakenly dug on the roadside, revealing a new stone hole next to the Heel Stone.

In the early 1980s, [[Julian C. Richards]] led the Stonehenge Environs Project, a detailed study of the surrounding landscape. The project was able to successfully date such features as the [[Lesser Cursus]], [[Coneybury Henge]] and several other smaller features.

In 1993, the way that Stonehenge was presented to the public was called 'a national disgrace' by the House of Commons Public Accounts Committee. Part of English Heritage's response to this criticism was to commission research to collate and bring together all the archaeological work conducted at the monument up to this date. This two-year research project resulted in the publication in 1995 of the monograph ''[[Stonehenge in its landscape]]'', which was the first publication presenting the complex stratigraphy and the finds recovered from the site. It presented a rephasing of the monument.<ref name=Whitt>{{cite journal |last=Whittle |first=Alasdair |year=1996 |title=Eternal stones: Stonehenge completed |journal=Antiquity |volume=70 |issue=268 |pages=463–465 |doi=10.1017/S0003598X00083459|s2cid=163697929 }}</ref>

====21st century====
More recent excavations include a series of digs held between 2003 and 2008 known as the [[Stonehenge Riverside Project]], led by Mike Parker Pearson. This project mainly investigated other monuments in the landscape and their relationship to the stones—notably, Durrington Walls, where another "Avenue" leading to the River Avon was discovered. The point where the Stonehenge Avenue meets the river was also excavated and revealed a previously unknown circular area which probably housed four further stones, most likely as a marker for the starting point of the avenue.

In April 2008, [[Tim Darvill]] of the University of Bournemouth and [[Geoffrey Wainwright (archaeologist)|Geoff Wainwright]] of the Society of Antiquaries began another dig inside the stone circle to retrieve datable fragments of the original bluestone pillars. They were able to date the erection of some bluestones to 2300 BC,<ref name="news.bbc.co.uk"/> although this may not reflect the earliest erection of stones at Stonehenge. They also discovered organic material from 7000 BC, which, along with the Mesolithic postholes, adds support for the site having been in use at least 4,000 years before Stonehenge was started. In August and September 2008, as part of the Riverside Project, [[Julian C. Richards]] and [[Mike Pitts (archaeologist)|Mike Pitts]] excavated Aubrey Hole 7, removing the cremated remains from several Aubrey Holes that had been excavated by Hawley in the 1920s, and re-interred in 1935.<ref name="Sheffield Uni"/> A licence for the removal of human remains at Stonehenge had been granted by the [[Ministry of Justice (United Kingdom)|Ministry of Justice]] in May 2008, in accordance with the ''Statement on burial law and archaeology'' issued in May 2008. One of the conditions of the licence was that the remains should be reinterred within two years and that in the intervening period they should be kept safely, privately and decently.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.number10.gov.uk/Page20787 |title=StonehengeBones – epetition response |last=Anon |date=29 September 2009 |work=The prime minister's office epetitions |publisher=Crown copyright:Ministry of Justice |access-date=6 November 2009 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20091002212133/http://www.number10.gov.uk/Page20787 |archive-date= 2 October 2009}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.justice.gov.uk/guidance/docs/burial-law-archaeology-statementii.pdf |title=Statement on burial law and archaeology |last=Anon |date=April 2008 |work=Review of Burial Legislation |publisher=Crown copyright:Ministry of Justice |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091111115334/http://www.justice.gov.uk/guidance/docs/burial-law-archaeology-statementii.pdf |archive-date=11 November 2009 |url-status=dead |access-date=6 November 2009}}</ref>

A new landscape investigation was conducted in April 2009. A shallow mound, rising to about {{convert|40|cm|in|0|abbr=in|order=flip}} was identified between stones 54 (inner circle) and 10 (outer circle), clearly separated from the natural slope. It has not been dated but speculation that it represents careless backfilling following earlier excavations seems disproved by its representation in eighteenth- and nineteenth-century illustrations. There is some evidence that, as an uncommon geological feature, it could have been deliberately incorporated into the monument at the outset.<ref name="field2010" /> A circular, shallow bank, little more than {{convert|10|cm|in|0|spell=in|order=flip}} high, was found between the Y and Z hole circles, with a further bank lying inside the "Z" circle. These are interpreted as the spread of spoil from the original Y and Z holes, or more speculatively as hedge banks from vegetation deliberately planted to screen the activities within.<ref name=field2010>{{cite journal |last=Field |first=David |date=March 2010 |title=Introducing 'Stonehedge' |journal=British Archaeology |issue=111 |pages=32–35 |issn=1357-4442|display-authors=etal}}</ref>

In 2010, the Stonehenge Hidden Landscape Project discovered a "henge-like" monument less than {{cvt|1|km||order=flip}} away from the main site.<ref name=IAA>{{cite web |url=http://www.birmingham.ac.uk/schools/iaa/departments/archaeology/news/2010/new-henge.aspx |title=A new 'henge' discovered at Stonehenge |publisher=[[University of Birmingham]] |date=22 July 2010 |access-date=22 July 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120711182439/https://www.birmingham.ac.uk/schools/iaa/departments/archaeology/news/2010/new-henge.aspx |archive-date=11 July 2012}}</ref> This new hengiform monument was subsequently revealed to be located "at the site of Amesbury 50", a round barrow in the [[Cursus Barrows]] group.<ref>{{Cite journal |doi=10.1002/arp.1422 |title=The Stonehenge Hidden Landscapes Project |journal=Archaeological Prospection |volume=19 |issue=2 |pages=147 |year=2012 |last1=Gaffney |first1=C. |last2=Gaffney |first2=V. |last3=Neubauer |first3=W. |last4=Baldwin |first4=E. |last5=Chapman |first5=H. |last6=Garwood |first6=P. |last7=Moulden |first7=H. |last8=Sparrow |first8=T. |last9=Bates |first9=R.|last10 = Löcker|first10 = K. |last11=Hinterleitner |first11=A. |last12=Trinks |first12=I. |last13=Nau |first13=E. |last14=Zitz |first14=T. |last15=Floery |first15=S. |last16=Verhoeven |first16=G. |last17=Doneus |first17=M.|bibcode=2012ArchP..19..147G |s2cid=128595153 }}</ref>

In November 2011, archaeologists from University of Birmingham announced the discovery of evidence of two huge pits positioned within the [[Stonehenge Cursus]] pathway, aligned in celestial position towards midsummer sunrise and sunset when viewed from the Heel Stone.<ref>Boyle, Alan, [https://web.archive.org/web/20111201092521/http://cosmiclog.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/11/28/9074269-pits-add-to-stonehenge-mystery ''Pits Add to Stonehgenge Mystery''], ''msnbc.com Cosmic Log'', 28 November 2011</ref><ref name=UBdiscovery>[http://www.birmingham.ac.uk/news/latest/2011/11/25Nov-Discoveries-provide-evidence-of-a-celestial-procession-at-Stonehenge.aspx ''Discoveries Provide Evidence of a Celestial Procession at Stonehenge''] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120118223219/http://www.birmingham.ac.uk/news/latest/2011/11/25Nov-Discoveries-provide-evidence-of-a-celestial-procession-at-Stonehenge.aspx|date=18 January 2012 }}, ''University of Birmingham Press Release'', 26 November 2011</ref> The new discovery was made as part of the Stonehenge Hidden Landscape Project which began in the summer of 2010.<ref>[http://www.birmingham.ac.uk/news/latest/2010/07/5july-hengesearch.aspx ''Birmingham Archaeologists Turn Back Clock at Stonehenge''] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120118151324/http://www.birmingham.ac.uk/news/latest/2010/07/5july-hengesearch.aspx|date=18 January 2012 }}, ''University of Birmingham Press Release'', 5 July 2010</ref> The project uses non-invasive geophysical imaging technique to reveal and visually recreate the landscape. According to team leader Vince Gaffney, this discovery may provide a direct link between the rituals and astronomical events to activities within the Cursus at Stonehenge.<ref name=UBdiscovery/>

In December 2011, geologists from University of Leicester and the National Museum of Wales announced the discovery of the source of some of the [[rhyolite]] fragments found in the Stonehenge [[debitage]]. These fragments do not seem to match any of the standing stones or bluestone stumps. The researchers have identified the source as a {{convert|70|m|adj=on|order=flip}} long rock outcrop called [[Craig Rhos-y-felin]] ({{coord|51|59|30|N|4|44|41|W|type:mountain_scale:1000_region:GB|name=Craig Rhos-y-Felin|display=inline}}), near Pont Saeson in north [[Pembrokeshire]], located {{convert|220|km|order=flip}} from Stonehenge.<ref>{{cite news |last=Keys |first=David |title=Scientists discover source of rock used in Stonehenge's first circle |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/archaeology/news/scientists-discover-source-of-rock-used-in-stonehenges-first-circle-6278894.html |access-date=20 December 2011 |newspaper=The Independent |date=18 December 2011 |location=London |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160210214611/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/archaeology/news/scientists-discover-source-of-rock-used-in-stonehenges-first-circle-6278894.html |archive-date=10 February 2016 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=New Discovery in Stonehenge Bluestone Mystery |url=http://www.museumwales.ac.uk/en/1823/?article_id=642 |work=National Museum of Wales |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130620114843/http://www.museumwales.ac.uk/en/1823/?article_id=642 |archive-date=20 June 2013 |df=dmy-all}}</ref>

In 2014, the [[University of Birmingham]] announced findings including evidence of adjacent stone and wooden structures and burial mounds near [[Durrington, Wiltshire|Durrington]], overlooked previously, that may date as far back as 4000 BC.<ref name=Tele>{{Cite web |author=Siciliano, Leon |date=10 September 2014 |title=Technology unearths 17 new monuments at Stonehenge |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/history/11086508/Technology-unearths-17-new-monuments-at-Stonehenge.html |website=The Telegraph |access-date = 20 May 2015|display-authors = etal |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20150215161120/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/history/11086508/Technology-unearths-17-new-monuments-at-Stonehenge.html |archive-date = 15 February 2015 |url-status = dead}}</ref> An area extending to {{convert|12|km2|sqmi|order=flip}} was studied to a depth of three metres with [[ground-penetrating radar]] equipment. As many as seventeen new monuments, revealed nearby, may be Late Neolithic monuments that resemble Stonehenge. The interpretation suggests a complex of numerous related monuments. Also included in the discovery is that the [[Cursus|cursus track]] is terminated by two {{convert|5|m|ft|adj=on|order=flip}} wide, extremely deep pits,<ref name="MyUser_Smithsonianmag.com_October_20_2014c">{{cite web |url=http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/what-lies-beneath-Stonehenge-180952437/ |title=What Lies Beneath Stonehenge? |newspaper=Smithsonianmag.com |access-date=20 October 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141019134138/http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/what-lies-beneath-Stonehenge-180952437/ |archive-date=19 October 2014 |url-status=live}}</ref> whose purpose is still a mystery.