*3.6. Archaeoastronomy in Stonehenge, England*

Cultural heritage related to the sky (archeoastronomy) is a vital component of cultural heritage, in general, and recent UNESCO's Astronomy and World Heritage Initiative, supported by the International Working Group on Astronomy and World Heritage and by the International Astronomical Union through its Commission C4 on World Heritage and Astronomy emphasizes its added value [91].

The prehistoric monument of Stonehenge has long been studied for its possible connections with ancient astronomy (Figure 8). The site is aligned in the direction of the sunrise of the summer solstice and the sunset of the winter solstice. Archaeoastronomers have made a range of further claims about the site's connection to astronomy, its meaning, and its use.

**Figure 8.** (**a**) Stonehenge from Google Earth and (**b**) 3D rendering and reconstruction showing the summer solstice sunrising light beam [92].

Early attention regarding the astronomical significance of the monument include: Stukeley [93], famous astronomer Edmund Halley, Sir Norman Lockyer (founding Editor of the journal Nature), and others [94–98].

These 3D studies and reconstructions and laser scans, video tours [99] together with 14C dating both have boosted and enhanced its archaeological and astronomical significance [100–102].

Stonehenge's use is still not known but it is accepted as part of a ritual landscape. Whatever religious, mystical, or spiritual elements were central to Stonehenge, its design includes a celestial observatory function, which might have allowed prediction of eclipse, solstice, equinox, and other celestial events important to a contemporary religion.

Stonehenge has become an increasingly popular destination during the summer solstice, with 20,000 people visiting in 2005, scholars have developed growing evidence that indicates prehistoric people visited the site only during the winter solstice (Figure 9). An increased number of visitors is observed, especially after the opening in December 2013 of the new visitor centre which houses permanent and temporary exhibitions, enhanced with more archaeometrical results as they become available annually for the monument.

**Figure 9.** Visitors in the Stonehenge during 2010–2017 [103].

The only megalithic monuments in the British Isles to contain a clear, compelling solar alignment are Newgrange and Maeshowe, which both famously face the winter solstice sunrise.

The most recent evidence supporting the theory of winter visits includes bones and teeth from pigs which were slaughtered at nearby Durrington Walls. Their age at death indicating that they were slaughtered either in December or January every year

Archaeological research and archaeometric measurements consider it was constructed from 3000 BC to 2000 BC but re-used at later times to at least the Late Bronze Age.

One of the most famous landmarks in the United Kingdom, Stonehenge is a legally protected Scheduled Ancient Monument since 1882 when legislation to protect historic monuments was first successfully introduced in Britain. The site and its surroundings were added to UNESCO's list of World Heritage Sites in 1986.

Other monuments built in accordance with astronomical alignments are potential tourist attractions if properly managed with new technologies.

Several potential or ongoing archaeometrical projects properly managed could with certainty become an added value and lead to an enhanced cultural tourism. Prior to completion of an archaeological-archaeometrical project, that is, the archaeological site and exhibition museum open to the public, but during the implementation of the program, at the level of summer schools and field work by groups of students and research institutes, the necessary expenses on a daily basis for the research investigators contributes as the economic stimulation to the local society. Hence, three factors are reinforced; *social cohesion, economic benefit*, and *scientific development.*
