Stonehenge: New study suggests historic monument's Altar Stone may not be Welsh as previously thought
A new study has thrown new light on the likely origins of the Altar Stone at Stonehenge.
The largest of the attraction's "bluestones" was previously though to be sourced from west Wales.
The Preseli hills in Pembrokeshire, some 180 miles to the west of the site in Wiltshire, is where the majority of the bluestones have been sourced.
For the last 100 years the Altar Stone at Stonehenge was also considered to have derived from the Old Red Sandstone sequences of the region.
But no specific location had been identified for its source.
Now, researchers say it is time to "broaden our horizons" as they propose to look more closely at northern Britain, including Cheshire, the Lake District and parts of Scotland.
The research, led by Aberystwyth University, was published in the Journal of Archaeological Science.
In the paper, experts say considering the Altar Stone as a "bluestone" has influenced the long-held view it came from Wales.
They now say the stone should be "de-classified" as such, breaking the link to bluestones derived from the Preseli hills.
'Doesn't come from Wales'
Professor Nick Pearce, one of the paper's authors, told Sky News the Altar Stone, referred to as Stone 80, is an anomaly and should be considered separate.
"The view in terms of the conclusions we've drawn from this is that it doesn't come from Wales and maybe we should remove the Altar Stone from that grouping of bluestones and consider it independently," he said.
The Altar Stone, a sandstone, has an unusually high level of barium compared to other similar sandstones, which may be helpful in finding its source, and Professor Pearce thinks the research will lead to a change in mindset when considering Stonehenge.
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He added: "Keeping them grouped together doesn't really make sense and I think it will cause people to start looking at it in a slightly different context in terms of how it got there, when it got there, where it came from, and so on.
"So hopefully it will lead to some sort of new thoughts about the development of Stonehenge."
