The sun had been long delayed on Tuesday, but when it finally appeared, faces lit up and arms rose like one to greet the summer solstice at Britain’s most famous prehistoric monument.
The sun was intended to rise on the longest day of the year at 4:49 BC. m. (3:49 a. m. GMT), but shy in a sky as misty as the minds of many summer revelers who spent the night in the holy place. . .
Some 6,000 more people gathered for sunrise and sunset at 9:27 p. m. m. , according to the manager and police, at the first public summer solstice at Stonehenge since the coronavirus pandemic wreaked havoc in 2020.
Stonehenge was built in stages, from around 3000 BC. until 2300 B. C. , and the state stones are aligned with the movements of the sun. friend and daughter for her first solstice at Stonehenge.
Surrounded by sweet flute melodies, drums, bird songs and sheep bleating, but also the rumble of trucks on the nearby main road, Tetlon, 35, soaked up the atmosphere of the site.
The smell of incense and hashish wafted through the air, despite a nationwide ban and a sign on the front of the site.
At 5:08 a. m. , the sun appeared after all, serenaded through whistles and cheers but also came together through a collective rise of mobile phones in the air to immortalize the moment.
Two women wearing garlands of synthetic flowers in their hair opened and closed their arms to welcome the “new energy” of the summer sun that one of them, Joanna Willman, manifested so strongly at Stonehenge.
A stone’s throw away, a handful of men in robes were practicing yoga in front of the sun, surrounded by the garbage of the crowd. Another group, some wearing hearing aids, holding hands in concentric circles as they gently swayed before hugging others, moved through the moment. and smiling
“Stonehenge is the world’s tallest architecturally prehistoric stone circle,” according to the United Nations cultural organization, Unesco, which listed it a World Heritage Site in 1986.
In the seventeenth century a theory emerged that Stonehenge was built through the Celtic Druids, but has since been rejected by historians. However, fashionable druids today celebrate solstices and equinoxes at Stonehenge.
The ancient stone circle remains an enigma. Academics and other experts are debating the site’s purpose, with some claiming it was a place of worship, while others could have been used by ancient astronomers for observation.
In a rite before dawn, the Archdruida of Stonehenge, Rollo Maughfling, sang for peace in the 4 cardinal points, with invitations to the sun and the earth, sung in unison by some of the participants.
Heather Sabire, curator of the site, said that despite the length of the stones, the monument is “fragile” and added: “There are many features that cannot be seen with the naked eye. “
He said many “enjoy being at Stonehenge because it’s so special. “
Some perform their own ceremonies, “it’s like a position of worship for them. “
So much so, that there were scenes of holy embraces and communion with the stones.
The occasion resulted in two arrests: one for assault, the other similar to drugs.
But there are more tumultuous moments at Stonehenge. -AFP