Stonehenge-like 4,000-year-old sanctuary discovered in Netherlands

Like the famous stone circle in southern England, the sanctuary was built to align with the sun on the solstices

Published - June 22, 2023 06:10 pm IST

An illustration shows what the researchers believe is the 4,000-year-old Stonehenge-like sanctuary that archaeologists have discovered in Tiel, a town in the centre of the Netherlands, in this handout picture obtained on June 21, 2023.

An illustration shows what the researchers believe is the 4,000-year-old Stonehenge-like sanctuary that archaeologists have discovered in Tiel, a town in the centre of the Netherlands, in this handout picture obtained on June 21, 2023. | Photo Credit: Reuters

Archaeologists have discovered a 4,000-year-old sanctuary made up of ditches and burial mounds in the central Netherlands that they believe may have served a similar purpose to Stonehenge.

Like the famous stone circle in southern England, the sanctuary - which was as big as at least three soccer fields and built with soil and wood - was built to align with the sun on the solstices.

The archaeologists also discovered offerings, including animal skeletons, human skulls and valuable items such as a bronze spearhead, at the spots where the sun shone through the openings, according to a statement from the municipality of Tiel, a town around 70 km (45 miles) east of Rotterdam where the site was excavated.

"The largest mound served as a sun calendar, similar to the famous stones of Stonehenge in England," said the statement.

Also Read | Humans were using fire in Europe 50,000 years earlier than we thought

"This sanctuary must have been a highly significant place where people kept track of special days in the year, performed rituals and buried their dead. Rows of poles stood along pathways used for processions."

While excavating the site in 2017, archaeologists also discovered several graves. One grave was of a woman buried with a glass bead from Mesopotamia, present-day Iraq.

It's the oldest bead ever found in the Netherlands and researchers said it proved people of this area were in contact with people almost 5,000 km away.

The archaeologists took six years to research more than a million excavated objects dating from the Stone Age, the Bronze Age, the Iron Age, the Roman Empire and the Middle Ages.

After the excavation was finished, the site was covered again to allow construction work.

Some of the discoveries will be showcased in a local museum in Tiel and in the Dutch National Museum of Antiquities.

0 / 0
Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.