Bigstones

Nearest Town: Amesbury, Wiltshire

OS Grid Reference: SU 123 422

Directions: On the A344 (unfortunately) at the junction with the A303. Signposted, and in most road atlases. Large car park, often full in peak tourist season. Entry fee of £5.90, although free to English Heritage or National Trust members.

Site Notes: The grand-daddy of them all, the first, the biggest and the best. Or so you may have thought, but this is not the case. It was constructed quite recently by the standards of Avebury and the majority of circle building. It is far from the biggest, and unfortunately a long way from the best, due to tragic mismanagement over the last few decades.

What makes Stonehenge special is its uniqueness. The stones have been worked like wood, shaped, fitted together with mortise and tenon joints, the lintels are found nowhere else. The peak of Stone Circle building, imitation by immigrants or put there by Merlin? You know as much as anyone else. Go out of season. Explore the countless barrows dotted around the countryside. Visit Woodhenge, Durrington Walls, and Avebury all of which are nearby. Put it into perspective and Stonehenge starts to drag itself out of the human muck it’s currently drowning in. And until the roads, visitor centre, fences and tacky souvenir shops go, thats all we have.