‘The World of Stonehenge’ at The British Museum

‘Stonehenge’ is synonymous around the world for many reasons. You may be a druid who celebrates the winter and summer solstice/equinox, you may be a history and archaeology nerd who is enthralled by the stone age and what secrets this monument holds. Or you could be a budding tourist who has paid the £20 fee to English Heritage (well worth it when you consider the amazing work that they do around the country) and have made your way to see the pile of rocks you could equally see for free on the motorway. I have done the latter. In the rain. In winter. Would not recommend. I forgot my umbrella. 

Now stone circles can be found all over the country, and indeed, there are a few in Europe. Stone circles have featured in myth and magic, from literature to Walt Disney. There is a certain mystery to them, its enchanting. These stone circles are from a time that history has almost forgotten. Unless you’re that stone age history nerd, in which case, we salute you. But the whole point of my ramblings about stone circles is the fact that The British Museum (No, they did not take Stone Henge into their museum) have a new landmark exhibition called ‘The World of Stonehenge’. I was told that it was worth seeing. Mind you, this same person said the same thing about seeing Stonehenge in the rain in the middle of winter. So, I was dubious to say the least. But I’m an art fund member and I get half-off ticket prices, so I thought why not? I have a free Wednesday morning. If anything it’ll make an interesting article.

 So, quick facts! How old is Stonehenge?

It’s complicated really, so there was activity around the monument dating from around 3100 BC but the stones weren’t being placed until 3000-2000 BC… give or take. So… its old.

It became an UNESCO world Heritage site in 1986, the site is owned by the Queen and managed by English Heritage. The surrounding land, such as the charming village of Avebury is owned by the National Trust.

Now this exhibition was good. Unusual, really. I didn’t know what I was expecting with this exhibition because I wasn’t aware of the artefacts around the monument. How would they curate it? How does one make stone interesting?... 

So, it turns out you can make stone interesting. Or maybe I’m getting boring? Either way! Let’s go! So, we start, surprise, surprise with some stonework. Who’d have thought! Some of the most interesting things about it is the fact that early peoples in Britain used stones to write stories, show their way of life. Now stone is pretty hard to work with and I can only imagine the time and patience it took for this unknown artist to carve their peoples, animals and agricultural tools into this harsh material. Now, these drawings are old, and have worn away with time, but their markings are still there. It is, quite literally ‘set-in-stone’. But what this piece shows is that these peoples were directly connected to the land. This was a time before the mobile phone, the land gave them everything they needed to survive. The world around them governed social activities, ritualistic life, and the tempo to which their lives ran. And it was carved in 2500BC.

There is something very sad about a lot of these carvings. Yes, they talk about daily life, but they also talk about death. Take for example these chalk round boxes(?) these were found in the graves of children. They can only assume they’re offerings. Furthermore, what was exciting about these artefacts was that grave gifts and relics were rare. As this is a child’s grave, during a time where child mortality was high, this child was lucky to have such parents who loved them very much. These little boxes are carved most delicately with geometric patterns. The material is chalk making the carving process much easier as the stone is much softer to work with. Considering how easily chalk erodes it’s a marvel that these have survived the past 5000 years since the child died.

Now, a couple of jadeite axe heads later, we reached the section that’s heavily guarded. And for good reason. Axe heads are great, and there were a lot of them. Cool. But you can’t deny these thin, gold sun collars are extraordinarily beautiful. It looks like our ancestors had a thing for gold as its everywhere in this exhibition. Now, that’s not to say that everyone had gold way back when because it was surmised by the lovely researchers at the British Museum, that these collars were for very special people, most likely priests, or priestesses of the sun. these collars are thin, hammered and intricately designed with light geometric patterns. To be honest, I was there for the gold. Because hands down, it is some of the most stunning metal work and jewellery that I’ve ever seen. There were solid cold capes worn by women priestesses to help reflect the suns raise during prayer, there were these beautiful arm bracelets that were found adorned on the body of a woman who is at least 5000 years old. But what impresses me most of all is the ingenuity of design, these were all made by hand. 

Now I can also tell what you’re thinking. What in the heaven does all of this have to do with Stonehenge? Well, it turns out that Stonehenge was, not only an important place of worship, but it was a cultural hub for trade. A lot of these artefacts seen at this exhibition aren’t just from England. They’re from all over Europe. But what is crucial is that the designs of these artefacts and some of the stone carvings, axe heads etc are all very similar. What can be assumed is that during trade, items, ideas, language, and stories were all exchanged. In fact, there is an archaeological site in Cambridgeshire on a marsh where items were found from as far as Egypt. It showed that we weren’t that isolated in our communities even as far back as 5000 BC. So, this exhibition is well worth going to, you gain a new understanding of the term ‘globalisation’ and trade. It is particularly poignant especially during this time. If the peoples from 5000 years ago can work hard to make connections even as far as Egypt. Well then, so can we.

The World of Stonehenge is on at The British Museum until the 17th July 2022.

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