What Really Happened to Stonehenge

Day 7

Field Trip! Today it was off to Stonehenge and Salisbury Cathedral for the day!

(And a thank you to my brother Mark for the inspiration for the name of this post)

First up Stonehenge. Some interesting things that I did not know about, 1. Stonehenge is not oldest or the largest "henge" (circle of standing stones or wood) 2. Only about half the original stones remain, the others were likely torn down to use as building material or to destroy the thought to be pagan worship center 3. Many of the stones are actually from Whales and were brought down the coast by the River Avon-- stones have been found in the river. 

The Heel Stone-- It is a marker for the end of the Avenue, or the processional route towards the circle

Phi Mu Love <3

The back of Stonehenge, this is where you can watch the sunrise through the rocks on the Winter Solstice

The two types of rock used to build Stonehenge. The one on the right has a warmer surface than the one on the left. 

Recreation of what a prehistoric village might look like. 

I could have sworn the rocks were larger than that....Stonehenge visitor center

Ava and I attempted to move a rock that weighed as much as the ones in the henge.

Stonehenge was beautiful. It is amazing to walk around and see how the stones seem to change sizes base on the angle you are looking at it. It is magnificent to see all the work that went into creating not only the henge but the still existent mounds that lay around the henge. Though it is 1.5 hours south of Oxford, it is quite a bit cooler and very windy due to the lack of trees and tall landscaping around it. 

Our next stop was just 15 minutes north in Salisbury. Salisbury is home to one of the most famous English cathedrals, it was built in 40 years, very quickly for a building of its magnitude. The cathedral has a gravel foundation only 4ft deep and is kept up by the river that flows under it. The Salisbury Cathedral is home to 1 of the 4 original Magna Carta(s) left in the world. 

Flags from past military regimes, when they get new colors they must retire the old flowers at a place of God

First clock!! This first modern clock is an original and still working, although it does not have a face it rings so that people would know when church services were about to start. 

The only coat of arms from Henry the VIII and His first wife. After their divorce all coat of arms were ordered to be destroyed, this one was either forgot or it was allowed to stay. This is located in the private prayer room of Henry's lawyer. 

The seats where the priests' and bishops' sit. During services the congregation was to stand the entire time. To show that they were the same as the commoners they would "stand" too. The only trick was there seats flipped up and created a higher seat for them to sit on.

The only original glass still in the cathedral (pane on the right), the rest were replaced with glass that allowed more light in to brighten the church.

After touring the church we walked around the town of Salisbury before attending the Evening song. The Evening song was beautiful, it was a somewhat shortened traditional Church of England service. At the service the girls choir was singing. The girls looked like they could not be older than 10 or 12 but they had the voices of angels. The service was very similar to the Lutheran services I am use to at home. There was a lot of standing and sitting, just like home. But the normal prayers we say were sung by the choir beautifully. The service was also much shorter and did not have a sermon, though I assume this is because it was a Wednesday night. 

Boston Tea Party Restaurant!

Directions to Salisbury Maryland and Salisbury North Carolina!

School where William Golding, author of Lord of the Flies, taught.