The stone, which would have originated in Scotland, moved 700 kilometers to the famous monument. Glacial movements can explain 300 kilometers of the journey, with the remaining 400 having been carried out by humans.
A new publication in the Journal of Quaternary Science has brought new information about one of archaeology’s most enduring mysteries: how the enormous Stone from the Stonehenge Altar was transported hundreds of kilometers more than 4,000 years ago.
The sandstone block of six tonslocated in the center of Stonehenge, has long intrigued researchers. Previous studies have established that the stone did not originate from the local geology surrounding the monument. In 2024, scientists identified its likely origin in the Ancient Red Sandstone formations of the northeast of Scotlandapproximately 700 kilometers from its current location.
The discovery raised a crucial question: how did such a large stone come to be transported across Britain? during the Neolithic periodlong before the invention of modern transportation technologies?
Researchers at Curtin University have now examined whether glaciers could have transported the stone south naturally. Using mineral grain dating and sophisticated ice sheet modeling, the team concluded that the glaciers alone do not explain the journey.
Their findings suggest that glacial activity during the last Ice Age may have transported rocks from northeastern Scotland to Doggerland, a now-submerged landmass that once linked parts of Britain to mainland Europe and was beneath what is now the North Sea. If correct, this hypothesis would explain about 300 kilometers of the trip of the stone.
However, the remaining 400 kilometers remain unexplained by natural processes, says .
According to researchers, the evidence strongly points to human intervention. Although glaciers may have provided an early phase of transportation, prehistoric communities would still have needed move the huge stone hundreds of kilometerscombining land and river transport.
The study questions assumptions about the organizational capacity of the former inhabitants of Great Britain. At the time of Stonehenge’s construction, there was little evidence of a centralized authority capable of coordinating large-scale infrastructure projects. Still, the transport of the Altar Stone appears to have involved a complex and multifaceted operation, which required considerable cooperation and determination.
The discoveries add another chapter to the mystery of Stonehenge, one of the most famous prehistoric monuments in the world.
