It is the morning of June 21st. It is the time of the longest day of the year, the time known as the summer solstice. As the day dawns, the sun's warming rays spread over the Salisbury Plains near the town of Wiltshire, England. The sun itself is the primary clue as to the origin and purpose of this man-made arrangement of stones. Established in prehistoric times, it remains as one of the great mysteries of the eons.
Archaelogical evidence suggests more and more that Stonehenge has religious significance.
Scholars suggest that Stonehenge was built in three stages. In the first stage, about 2200 B.C., a circular space was cleared with a surrounding ditch and embankment. A heel stone was put in place and 56 3-foot deep pits were dug about the perimeter of the space. The second stage, from 1700-1600 B.C., featured the retrieval of blue stones from a quarry 140 miles away in South Wales to be set up in two rows inside the circle. Only half of the stones were set up, then mysteriously taken down.