Геологийн нарийвчилсан шинжилгээгээр Стоунхенжийн зургаан тонн жинтэй тахилын чулууны гарал үүслийн талаарх зуу гаруй жилийн турш баримталж ирсэн таамаглал няцаагдлаа.
Стоунхенж бол дэлхийн хамгийн алдартай неолитын үеийн дурсгалт газруудын нэг бөгөөд 4.9 метр урттай, тэгш хэлбэртэй тахилын чулуу нь тус газрын хамгийн оньсого мэт элементүүдийн нэг юм. Олон улсын судлаачдын баг Journal of the Geological Society сэтгүүлд нийтэлсэн судалгаагаараа уг чулууны химийн найрлага, эрдэс бодис, изотопын шинж чанарыг нарийвчлан судалж, геологийн “хурууны хээ”-г нь гаргажээ.
Уламжлалт ойлголтоор уг чулууг Уэльсээс гаралтай гэж үздэг байсан ч орчин үеийн шинжилгээний аргууд үүнийг үгүйсгэж, Шотландын зүүн хойд хэсгийг илүү боломжит эх үүсвэр хэмээн зааж байна. Профессор Данкан Пирригээр ахлуулсан баг чулууны бүтцийг өмнөх бүх судалгаанаас илүү дэлгэрэнгүй шинжилсэн боловч одоогоор Шотландын Оркадиан сав газраас чулууны бүх шинж чанарыг яг таг агуулсан байршлыг олж чадаагүй байна.
Судлаачид тодорхой байршлыг хараахан олоогүй байгаа ч энэхүү үр дүн нь судалгааны хүрээг нарийсгаж, ирээдүйн хайгуулын ажлыг илүү үр дүнтэй болгож байна. Эрдэмтдийн үзэж байгаагаар боломжит газруудыг үгүйсгэх нь шинэ эх үүсвэрийг олохтой адил ач холбогдолтой бөгөөд энэхүү нарийвчилсан геологийн шинжилгээ нь Стоунхенжийн чулуунууд хэдэн мянган жилийн өмнө хэрхэн тээвэрлэгдэн ирсэн тухай түүхэн үнэнийг нээхэд чухал түлхэц болно.
Дэлгэрэнгүйг эх сурвалжаас харах
↓Эх сурвалжийг нээх ↓
The search for the origin of the six-tonne Altar Stone has entered a new phase. A fresh geological study has eliminated several proposed locations, yet none of the sites examined so far matches the stone’s profile.
Stonehenge is among the most famous Neolithic monuments in the world, and the long-distance transport of its stones is a big part of that renown. The Altar Stone, a sandstone slab lying flat at the heart of the site on Salisbury Plain, is one of its most puzzling elements.
The new work, published in the Journal of the Geological Society, offers the most detailed geological analysis of the giant rock to date. It comes from an international team and builds on earlier research that had already upended a long-held assumption about where the slab came from.
A Century-old Belief Overturned
For more than a hundred years, archaeologists and geologists believed the distinctive slab, measuring 4.9 meters (16 feet) in length, had come from Wales. That view was overturned by recent research using modern analytical techniques, which instead pointed to northeast Scotland as a likely source. Richard Bevins, an honorary professor in the Department of Geography and Earth Sciences at Aberystwyth University, put it plainly:
“For almost a century, the prevailing view was that the Altar Stone came from west Wales. Our previous research overturned that assumption and pointed instead to Scotland as the most likely source.”
The contrast with the other ones is striking, because the smaller bluestones, as the paper notes, traveled roughly 225 kilometers (140 miles) from west Wales, while the prehistoric monument itself was built in several phases between around 3000 and 1600 B.C.
Testing The Stone’s Fingerprint
To dig deeper, the researchers combined new observations of the boulder with a detailed study of fragments held in museum collections. They examined its structure, minerals, chemical composition and isotopic characteristics, a wide range of tests meant to build a geological fingerprint. Duncan Pirrie, an emeritus professor at the University of South Wales who led the study, called it the most comprehensive geological investigation of the structure ever undertaken. He said that:
“This is the most comprehensive geological investigation of the Altar Stone ever undertaken. By combining a wide range of analytical techniques, we have built the clearest picture yet of the stone’s composition and tested the leading theories about its origins.”
So far, the search in the Orcadian Basin in northeast Scotland has not turned up a location matching its characteristics. Pirrie said none of the locations examined share its full set of characteristics, which means the search is not over, but the team is now far better equipped to focus on the areas most likely to yield an answer.
Why Ruling Places Out Still Counts
It may sound like a step backward, but the scientists insist otherwise. Bevins explained that the latest study significantly refines the search by identifying the specific geological characteristics to look for, so future investigations can be targeted more effectively.
Nick Pearce, an emeritus professor of geochemistry in the same department at Aberystwyth University, framed it in detective terms. In his words, ruling out potential source areas is just as important as identifying new ones, since every location eliminated narrows the search. He added that:
“The stone is unique among those at Stonehenge, and tracing its source would provide valuable new insights into its remarkable journey to Salisbury Plain thousands of years ago.”
According to the researchers, the detailed fingerprint established by the study could eventually help pinpoint the source of this monument. They also say it could provide fresh insights into one of prehistory’s most remarkable engineering achievements.
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