Thousands are again expected to converge on Stonehenge on Monday, 21 June, to mark the summer solstice. Every year, the prehistoric site in southern England draws large crowds eager to celebrate the year’s longest day with music, dance and other revelry. Among them are tourists, curious onlookers as well as followers of spiritual sects. The event also attracts modern-day druids, followers of the Iron Age Celtic priest who used the much older site for their nature cult.

Solstice
A solstice happens twice each year, when the Earth’s axis is most tilted toward or away from the Sun, causing it to be seen at its northernmost or southernmost extreme. In the northern hemisphere, the summer solstice occurs around 21 June, the winter solstice around 21 December.

Megaliths
The World Heritage Site is located in the English county of Wiltshire, some 130 kilometres southwest of London. A complex Neolithic and Bronze Age monument, it is composed of earthworks surrounding a circular setting of large standing stones.

It is thought to have been built some time between 3000 BC and 1600 BC. According to the latest research, the stone monument dates back to 2300 BC. Some of the stones weigh up to 45,000 kilos. How these megaliths were transported and erected remains a mystery. They are believed to have been carried there from Wales over a distance of some 250 kilometres.

Significance
There is no scientific agreement as to the monument’s origin and function. Some see is as a temple, others as an astronomical calendar. Others say the site was used to worship the sun. In view of the 350 burial mounds in its vicinity, the theory considered most convincing regards it as a burial site. It was declared a World Heritage Site in 1986. Until 1918 it was owned by a local resident, who donated it to the state.

Attraction
One of Britain’s most popular sites, Stonehenge attracts some 750,000 visitors every year. Visitors are only allowed to wander among the stones and touch them during the summer solstice.

Incidents
Last year’s summer solstice was marred by a number of minor incidents. Around 25 people were arrested for creating a disturbance or using drugs. The organizers stress that drugs are illegal but allow visitors to bring some beer or wine. Following confrontations between police and hooligans, the site was closed between 1986 and 2000. Last year’s summer solstice was attended by a record 36,000 visitors.

“Dutch Stonehenge”
In 1990, Dutch archaeologists discovered a similar structure in the east of the Netherlands. Though its two nearly identical circles are marked by wooden poles rather than stones, its geometric principles are the same as those used at Stonehenge. It’s thought the poles served as a sowing and harvesting calendar or to observe the solstices, which were accompanied by various rituals and festivities.