Large Settlement Unearthed Near Stonehenge

Archaeologists have discovered the remains of what may have been a village near the site of Stonehenge, the mysterious ancient stone formations in southern England.

Excavations at Durrington Walls, two miles from the Stonehenge site, revealed a huge settlement, suggesting that Stonehenge was part of a much larger complex and giving insights into the building process of the famous landmark.

It is "an old series of housing, eight in all," said Parker Pearson of Sheffield University. "The dates we got from radiocarbon dating are exactly the same as those for the construction of Stonehenge when they put the big Sarsen stones up. We think we've got it -- the village where the builders lived when they were constructing the monument."

"It's not an ordinary village that we discovered," said Pearson, it is "a very special one."

Stonehenge, with its circle of giant stones standing upright -- has been the object of fascination and speculation since its discovery in the 18th century.

How did people manage to move gigantic stones, weighing up to 80 tons each, some 5000 years ago?

And what were people doing there?

The village of Durrington Walls was built around another ceremonial monument not made of stone, but of wood. The wooden circle was composed of a series of concentric rings made with huge timber posts.

According to Pearson, there is a close connection between the two sites -- Stonehenge and Durrington Walls.

Durrington's avenues are aligned with the midsummer solstice sunset. It celebrated life -- the avenue allowed to transport the dead from the timber rings to the river for their journey to afterlife.

Stonehenge's avenues line up with the midsummer solstice sunrise. It was a used as a memorial, and a resting place for some of the dead.

Pearson said that there were some 250 cremation burials at Stonehenge.

This village was a place for ritual, but also a place of life and living, according to Pearson.