“Unearthed Secrets: Archaeologists Discover Denmark’s Mysterious 4,000-Year-Old Wooden Ritual Site, Echoing Stonehenge’s Enigma!”
In fact, there have been dozens of henges found across the continent, and this is the second such woodhenge to be found in the area. Perhaps the most famous was found in Salisbury, England, just two miles northeast of Stonehenge itself.
The prevalence of these structures, experts say, indicates a shared system of beliefs across Neolithic European cultures. The discovery of the Danish Woodhenge serves as further proof of how widespread these beliefs truly were.
Researchers In Denmark Discover The Remains Of A 4,000-Year-Old Woodhenge
In January, experts were excavating the site of a future housing estate in Aars, North Jutland when they came across a circle that once held roughly 45 wooden posts. The circle had a diameter of around 98.5 feet and was likely constructed sometime between 2600 and 1600 B.C.E.
“It is an extraordinary find,” Sidsel Wåhlin, a curator at the Vesthimmerlands Museum, told The Guardian.
Wåhlin said she initially thought the marks in the ground were nothing more than a line of post holes — until further investigation revealed they formed a circle.
“I was like: ‘Oh my God, a timber circle, there is just no other explanation,’” she added.
Wikimedia CommonsStonehenge likely served a similar ritual purpose as other henges across Europe, but experts still debate what that purpose truly was.
As with Stonehenge and perhaps all of Europe’s various henges that have been found, Woodhenge is believed to have once been an important ritual site.
“They are ritual centers and sites that are connected with the worship of the sun and the agricultural ritual practices of the time,” Wåhlin said. “In order to decide to make such a specific monument you have to understand what it means and how to plan it.”
Post Comment