Ancient Welshmen Helped Build Stonehenge

Ancient Welshmen are buried at Stonehenge, new analysis of cremated remains discovered at the prehistoric monument has revealed.
It is now believed the Welshmen helped to build Stonehenge more than 5,000 years ago after helping to drag the stones from the Preseli Mountains of Wales, some 140 miles (225km) from the Wiltshire monument.

Until now, little was known about the origin of the people who built the ancient stone circle, although the origin of the stones was already known.

According to the University of Oxford research, 10 of the 25 cremated skull bones found at Stonehenge belong to people from ‘western Britain’, most likely Wales.

Because the older ‘bluestones’ used to start building Stonehenge also come from the Preseli Mountains in Wales, it raises the possibility the dead people either helped to transport the building blocks, or were taken to the site from there to be buried.

Stonehenge was built in several stages, with construction completed around 3,500 years ago.

Researchers from Oxford University examined the strontium isotope composition in the cremated bones buried at the site between 3,180 and 2,380 BC to reveal where the ancient people spend most of their lives.

In 10 of the fragments of skull, they found chemicals in the remains were consistent with people from western Britain, a region that includes west Wales – the known source of Stonehenge’s ‘bluestones’.

An analysis of 25 skull bones left at the site between 3180 to 2380 BC revealed that at least 10 did not live near Stonehenge prior to their death. Pictured are three of the cremated cranial fragments used in the study

Stonehenge is one of the most intensely studied prehistoric monuments.

Historians believe it was built in several stages, with the first completed around 5,000 years ago by Neolithic Britons using primitive tools, possibly made from deer antlers.

Construction of the prehistoric monument was not completed around 3,500 years ago.

Over the years there has been much speculation around how and why Stonehenge was built, but the question of ‘who’ was behind the mysterious structure has received far less attention.

These bone fragments come from cremated human bone from an early phase of the site’s history at around 3000BC.

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