The origins of Stonehenge have fuelled centuries of speculation about its symbolic meaning. Some view these huge megaliths as a sacred place where ancient religious sects worshipped gods and goddesses; others prefer to see celestial designs in the placement of the stones, and still others have a more temporal view, viewing Stonehenge and other megaliths like it as simply another beautiful, historic site.

For those who are interested in the archaeology of standing stones and stone circles, there is plenty of information on the Internet to let you draw your own conclusions - temporal or spiritual.

The megalithic monuments of Scotland date from the mid-Neolithic Period to the late Bronze Age, about 3500 to 1000 BC. There are literally hundreds of megaliths scattered throughout Scotland, England and Ireland.

The stone monuments vary in size, height and even appearance: some may be as big as a village or as small as ten feet across. They may contain hundreds of stones arranged in a grid like pattern, or they may be as few as four in a circle. And like modern-day graveyards, far too many are dilapidated beyond recognition.

The most common similarity between all the stone circles and standing stones is that they consist of heavy rocks which have been lifted from one place to another to stand or lie in a particular configuration. The amount of energy and man hours it must have taken to build these monuments is simply mind-boggling and is part of the mystery that surrounds megaliths. How did these pre-historic peoples do it, and for what reason, are just two questions that come to mind when we think of the Herculean effort that must have gone into the task.

The history of the oppression of these stone worshipping people is not very well documented. We do know that as early as the 5th century, the Church issued various edicts condeming the veneration of stones. In the 9th century, the Council of Nantes in France condemnded stone worship and ordered all stone monuments destroyed: failure to do so could result in death.

In 1410, the Bishop of Hereford issued a proclamation forbidding the worship of stones and as recently as the 17th and 18th centuries, stones were attributed with healing properties. These so called "healing stones" were venerated as having special powers and many people visited them in search for a cure. In one such ritual, small children were passed back and forth through large holes in standing stones for protection from illness. Some stones were said to have soothing effects, a belief that has been passed down through the millenia and still exists today in the form of small hand-held worry stones which allegedly soothe and calm the person who handles them.

Other standing stones were associated with fertility and marriage. In the following account we hear of a young couple visiting the Stone of Odin, also known as Wodden's Stone, circa 1750:

The parties agreed stole from the rest of their companions, and went to the Temple of the Moon, where the woman, in presence of the man, fell down on her knees and prayed the god Wodden (for such was the name of the god they addressed upon this occasion) that he would enable her to perform all the promises and obligations she had and was to make to the young man present, after which they both went to the Temple of the Sun, where the man prayed in like manner before the woman, then they repaired from this to the stone [known as Wodden's or Odin's Stone], and the man being on one side and the woman on the other, they took hold of each other's right hand through the hole, and there swore to be constant and faithful to each other.

This ceremony was held so very sacred in those times that the person who dared to break the engagement made here was counted infamous, and excluded all society.
Source: Temple of the Moon, the Temple of the Sun and Wodden's Stone

Unfortunately, the Stone of Odin no longer exists. It was destroyed in 1814 by an ignorant absentee Southern farmer who did not want trespassors on his property so he broke the stone and used it to build a cowhouse. His action so angered the locals that there were several unsuccessful attempts to burn down his house and property. Today, the rest of the megalith is virtually intact, save the Stone of Odin. It is open to the public.

MORE about Scottish Megaliths on Gathering of the Clans:

From Stone Henge to the Stones of Stenness: Megaliths in Scotland Part Two

Those who want to further explore the subject of megaliths in Scotland should take advantage of the enormous amount of information available on the Internet. Below are links you can follow to find out more about the Standing Stones of Scotland and the amazing people who built and worshipped them thousands of years ago.

MMJ, October, 1999

Links:

Encarta Encylopedia Definition of Stonehenge

Great pictures from The Stonehenge Organization

Leon Fitt's Stone Circles

Literary Sources on Megaliths from "Heathen Monuments"

Discover Scottish Megaliths on The Stone Pages

The Megalith Map

Stones of Callanish

Time line from the Megalithic Pages