Avebury stonecircle, world heritage
The county of Wiltshire contains the most famous stone circles in the world: Stonehenge & Avebury. The meaning of the circles remains a mystery to this day but, together with their surroundings, they form an important testament to pre-history.
Avebury village was built at the centre of the enormous stone circle. The houses in the village were even built with stones from the age-old stone circle. Much has been torn down since the Middle Ages and especially in the 18th century. The stones were even used to build roads.
This heathen heritage of our ancestors must quickly disappear, is what they must have thought. The National Trust currently manages the Avebury site.
The large circle of Avebury used to consist of 98 sarsen stones and inside this circle was a north and south circle. The south circle consisted of 29 stones and the northern one of 27 stones. This required a lot of calculating on behalf of the builders back then. Next to thinking up and building circles, they also built access roads, called Avenues. These were access roads to let us say their temples. The people back then worshipped the earth, the air and the water.
Avebury is part of the Stonehenge, Avebury and Associated Sites UNESCO World Heritage Site.
In the tv-series "Heritage Sites of the World" we visit 26 locations. Each location featured is considered to be unique of universal value for all mankind. Officially designated by UNESCO as World Heritage Site, each one is to be safeguarded for the future as a testimony to its enduring past.
Information: http://www.stockshot.nl/worldheritagenl/
broadcast video footage available at: http://www.stockshot.nl/ ©