A 4,500-Year-Old Building Near Stonehenge Has Been Brought Back to Life

A large Neolithic structure called Durrington 68 was found at Durrington Walls near Stonehenge, where builders likely gathered and feasted. Its original purpose remains uncertain, with possibilities including ceremonial use, a gathering hall, or an animal barn. English Heritage has reimagined the structure as a learning center by erecting a replica at Stonehenge. The hall rises more than 20 feet and was built over nine months by more than 100 volunteers using Neolithic methods. The project recreated stone tools, used coppicing for woodland materials, and made chalk daub from chalk, water, and straw. The £1 million project will open to the public and later become an immersive learning space for school groups, including activities around a hearth, tool handling, traditional cooking, and crafts.

"“This project, several years in the research and planning, reconstructs a large Neolithic building,” Luke Winter, an experimental archaeologist who guided the project, said in a statement. “The building will provide a focus for education visits to Stonehenge allowing the public to witness the scale of carpentry projects in the Neolithic landscape."

"“The hall was built over the course of nine months by a team of more than 100 volunteers who relied on the tools and techniques of their Neolithic ancestors. This has meant recreating stone tools, using a woodland management technique known as coppicing, and creating a cement-like mixture of chalk, water, and straw called chalk daub.”"

"“The £1 million ($1.3 million) project, funded by the Kusama Trust, is nearing completion and will open to the public this summer ahead of being turned into an immersive learning space for school groups. The idea is for students to gain a deeper understanding of their history curriculum by gathering around a hearth, handling stone tools, and trying their hand at traditional cooking and crafts.”"

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