It may sound fanciful, but as darkness fell – and with it an extremely rare lunar event – we felt that the animals and birds of Stonehenge sensed that something strange was afoot.
The song of the skylarks and the flight of the starlings seemed particularly energetic; hares – animals associated with the moon in mythology – ran around the stone circle with apparent purpose; the people gathered at the monument became frightened.
Stonehenge is of course closely associated with the rising and setting of the sun, but there is also a growing belief that the ancient people who built the circle were also fascinated by the moon – and were aware of a phenomenon currently called the “great lunar standstill”, which only occurs every 18.6 years.
This weekend, archaeologists, astronomers and archaeoastronomers (who study how prehistoric people responded to the sky) met under a full moon to explore the theory that the builders of Stonehenge may have placed some stones to mark the moon’s standstill, the time when moonrise and moonset are farthest apart on the horizon.
“It’s very exciting,” said Clive Ruggles, emeritus professor of archaeoastronomy at the University of Leicester. “It’s a special night because the moon is on its lowest possible path through the sky and it’s also full. So it’s both things together.”
Ruggles, armed with maps, cameras and a theodolite, said the key is four “station stones” that form the corners of a rectangle framing the stone circle. As the moon rises at its southernmost point and sets at its northernmost, it aligns with the station stones.
“Was this all intentional?” asked Ruggles. “My guess is that people were aware that every 18th or 19th year there were times when you could see the moon rise exceptionally far in the south and set exceptionally far in the north, and people knew about it and remembered it.”
Heather Sebire, senior curator of Stonehenge at English Heritage, said it was logical that the builders of Stonehenge would have noticed the moon. “They were the first farmers. They must have observed the weather and the seasons. So they also paid attention to the moon.”
Sebire said some of Stonehenge’s bluestones catch the moonlight beautifully, adding, “That could be one of the reasons they used those stones.” She also explained that during the early phase of Stonehenge, people buried the cremated remains of the dead in a part of the monument that is in line with the station stones. “There could be something to that,” Sebire said.
Jennifer Wexler, a Stonehenge historian for English Heritage, said the vastness of the landscape makes it a wonderful place to watch not only the sunset but also the rising moon, especially when it is large. “It feels like a kind of seesaw of cosmic entities. It is very evocative.”
Those present felt a connection to other sites around the world where the full moon standstill has been observed. Similar groups observed it at the Calanais Man Stones on the Isle of Lewis in Scotland, at Chimney Rock in Colorado, an ancient Chacoan culture settlement, and at the Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles.
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Modern life does not affect the Stonehenge phenomenon. Cars and lorries whiz past on the A303 nearby and, unfortunately, a plantation on the horizon obscures the view of the point on the horizon where the southernmost moon first appears.
Only two of the four station stones remain in place. Markers show where the two missing stones were placed, according to English Heritage – but some archaeoastronomers believe one may have shifted slightly. A makeshift marker – a handbag – has been placed where they think it may have stood.
The weather in Britain inevitably plays a part too. As the time of moonrise approached on Friday evening, clouds began to gather and a light drizzle began to fall. There was a faint glow over the plantation but no large, awe-inspiring moon, making any meaningful measurement difficult.
It was not a disaster. The exact date of the lunar standstill is January 2025 and can be studied for months afterward.
“It’s a shame the clouds have come over,” said Fabio Silva, a lecturer in archaeological modelling at Bournemouth University. “But these things happen. We’ll get more chances. We’ll be back.”