Researchers from Wessex Archaeology have identified what they believe to be a predecessor to Stonehenge located in the village of Bulford, roughly 3 miles from the famous prehistoric monument. The site consists primarily of two holes that once held wooden posts positioned approximately 120 meters apart and estimated to have been between 2 and 4 meters in height. Analysis of these posts reveals they were deliberately aligned with the sunrise on the summer solstice and sunset on the winter solstice, mirroring the astronomical alignment principles employed at Stonehenge itself.
The structure has been dated to approximately 5,000 years ago through radiocarbon analysis, making it roughly 500 years older than Stonehenge. The discovery was made more than a decade earlier during ground clearing for military housing construction in Bulford, but detailed analysis of the alignments has only recently been completed. Dr. Fabio Silva, an archaeoastronomer from Bournemouth University, confirmed that when accounting for the width of the posts and adjusting for celestial changes over millennia, the alignment proves to be precisely accurate to the solstices.
Excavations around the post pits revealed numerous artifacts that provide insight into the community that occupied the site. These findings included decorated pottery fragments, flint tools, and animal bones, along with an antler implement used for digging. Among the most significant discoveries was a rare Neolithic knife crafted into a disc shape, which was found in an upright position and may have held symbolic meaning, possibly referencing the Sun.
Experts suggest the Bulford site dates to the same period as Stonehenge’s earliest phase of construction, when initial earthworks were established centuries before the stones were erected. The discovery raises the possibility that the builders of Stonehenge’s first stages may have been based in or seasonally gathering at Bulford during construction work. According to English Heritage, the focus on solar alignment at both sites likely reflects the importance of seasonal cycles to early farming communities whose survival depended on agricultural success tied to the seasons.
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