Has the mystery of Stonehenge been solved?

It’s the great mystery of Stonehenge – how did Stone Age people carry the huge ‘bluestones’ to the site from more than 160 kilometres away?

But a Welsh scientist has claimed that ancient people may not have been involved at all, and the stones were carried to the site by glaciers 500,000 years ago.

In a new book, The Stonehenge Bluestones, Brian John argues the stones were “just there”.

He says there’s little evidence that the stones were “mined” in Wales – and suggests that a simpler explanation is that a glacier carried them across the landscape.

“Over the past 50 years there has been a drift, in Stonehenge studies, from science toward mythology,” Mr John added.

This has been driven partly by constant media demands for new and spectacular stories about the monument.

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“This has been driven partly by constant media demands for new and spectacular stories about the monument, and partly by the archaeological emphasis on impact.

“So we see an obsession with narrative at the expense of evidence, and a host of newly manufactured myths which are even more wacky than the old ones. It’s time for a cool reassessment.”