Le chapitre montréalais de l'Archaeological Institute of America vous convie à une conférence donnée pas le Prof. Mike Parker Pearson (University of Sheffield, Department of Archaeology) le mardi  21 février prochain à 17h00. La conférence se tiendra à l'Université de Montréal, pavillon 3150 Jean-Brillant, local C-3061, Carrefour des Arts et Sciences.

The Montreal Society of the Archaeological Institute of America is pleased to invite you to a lecture given by Prof. Mike Parker Pearson (University of Sheffield, Department of Archaeology) on Tuesday February 21rst at 5pm. The lecture will take place at Université de Montréal, 3150 Jean-Brillant, room C-3061, Carrefour des Arts et Sciences.

Stonehenge: new discoveries

Stonehenge is one of the great mysteries of the prehistoric world. After seven years of new excavations and research, archaeologists now have a completely new understanding of the date and purpose of this enigmatic monument. One of the key break-through has been to understand how Stonehenge formed part of a wider complex of monuments and landscape features within Salisbury Plain. Professor Parker Pearson will present the results of the Stonehenge Riverside Project, and discuss the current theories about Stonehenge – an astronomical observatory, a centre of healing or a place of the ancestors – and the identity of its Neolithic builders.

We now know much more about the people who built Stonehenge – where they came from, how they lived, and how they were organized. Not only has the project discovered a large settlement of many houses, thought to be for Stonehenge’s builders, at the nearby henge enclosure of Durrington Walls but it has also re-dated Stonehenge and investigated its surrounding monuments and sites, many of which were hitherto undated and unknown. This presentation will provide a brief overview of some of the project’s highlights, including the recent discovery of Bluestonehenge. One of the greatest mysteries – why some of Stonehenge’s stones were brought from 180 miles away – is currently being investigated and its brand new results will be presented at the lecture.