How Did Stonehenge’s Altar Stone Arrive at Salisbury Plain?

PERTH, AUSTRALIA—According to a statement released by Curtin University, the central Altar Stone at Stonehenge was likely transported more than 430 miles from northeastern Scotland to the Salisbury Plain in carefully planned stages. It had been suggested that the more than 13,000 pounds of sandstone could have been moved by glacial activity. Anthony Clarke of Curtin University and his colleagues used mineral grain dating and ice-sheet modeling to see if glaciers alone could have completed the job. “Our modeling shows glaciers may have transported rocks part of the way during the last Ice Age—potentially as far as Dogger Bank in the North Sea—but not into southern England, meaning the stone would still have needed to be moved hundreds of kilometers by [Neolithic] people,” Clarke explained. Moving the megalith may have involved hauling it overland and floating it on rivers and along the coast when possible. “Transporting a stone of this size over such a long distance would have required planning, coordination, and a deep understanding of the landscape—not to mention tremendous determination,” Clarke concluded. Read the original scholarly article about this research in the Journal of Quaternary Science. To read about the origin of Stonehenge's bluestones, go to "Quarrying Stonehenge."