LONDON, Feb. 10 — Stonehenge, the renowned and mysterious ancient monument seen as symbol of Britain, may actually be a marvel of Swiss or German engineering.
ARCHAEOLOGISTS STUDYING the remains of a wealthy archer found in a 4,000-year-old grave exhumed last year near the renowned landmark said Monday that he was originally from the Alps region, probably modern-day Switzerland, Austria or Germany.
“He would have been a very important person in the Stonehenge area, and it is fascinating to think that someone from abroad — probably modern-day Switzerland — could have played an important part in the construction of the site,” archaeologist Andrew Fitzpatrick said in a statement.
The so-called “Amesbury Archer” was found in a grave in southern England about three miles from the landmark, buried with 100 items, including gold earrings, copper knives and pottery.
Researchers hailed the find — from about 2300 B.C. and the oldest-known grave in Britain — as one of the richest early Bronze Age sites in Europe.
He was dubbed “The King of Stonehenge” because of the lavish items found in his grave, including some of the earliest gold objects ever found in Britain.
Tests on the enamel of his teeth revealed he was born and grew up in the Alps region.
“Different ratios of oxygen isotopes form on teeth in different parts of the world, and the ratio found on these teeth prove they were from somebody from the Alps region,” said Tony Trueman from Wessex Archaeology.
“It is important proof that culture imported from the continent helped bring Britain out of the Stone Age,” he said.
Built between 3000 and 1600 B.C., Stonehenge is a ring of 20-ton stones on Salisbury Plain that draws armies of tourists each year.
Celebrations at the site during the summer solstice — the longest day of the year in the northern hemisphere — attract thousands of revelers, including Druids who believe Stonehenge was a sacred temple.
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