464 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1940 



THE BUILDING OF STONEHENGE 

 THE TRANSPORT OF THE PRESCELLT STONES 



Hitherto the actual plan and disposition of the stones and earth- 

 works has been dealt with. At this point it may be well to consider 

 the present state of our knowledge of the actual methods employed 

 in dealing with these vast blocks of stone. 



One of the first questions which is bound to arise is, Why were the 

 Prescelly stones brought to Salisbury Plain, which is 180 miles from 

 the site where they are found naturally? It should be remembered 

 that there are eight stone circles at Prescelly, as well as many other 

 traces of the Megalithic builders. Consequently a very reasonable 

 suggestion might be that a race migrating from Prescelly would bring 

 their sacred stones with them. The strong stimulus of religion might 

 make such a thing possible. It is practically certain that the stones, 



Figure 7. 



when removed from Prescelly, had not been dressed. This is evident 

 from the large number of chippings found at Stonehenge. 



The second question is, How were the stones transported ? To this 

 no certain reply can be given. There are three possible suggestions: 

 (1) There may have been an all-land route through South Wales; (2) 

 an all-water route by river and sea, round by Land's End and up the 

 Avon; or (3) a combination of the land and water route using the land 

 to reach a convenient estuary from which the stones might have been 

 shipped. 



And here the importance of the material composing the Altar 

 Stone is very evident. If Dr. Thomas' opinion is correct and the 

 stone came from the Cosheston Beds near Milford Haven, the stones 

 must have been moved southward from the Prescelly Mountains. 

 Here, it is true, there are river valleys, but they are quite unsuited for 

 water transit, being swift-flowing momitain streams, with shallows 

 and rapids, which must have presented considerable obstacles for 

 navigation. 



