Stonehenge Decoded is a British documentary special produced for National Geographic Channel in which British archaeologist Professor Mike Parker Pearson unearths surprising evidence supporting a radical new vision of Stonehenge.
The two-hour special premiered worldwide on National Geographic Channel on Sunday 1 June, 2008. It aired in South Africa at 21h00.
Repeats
Monday 2 June: 00h00, 03h00, 09h00, 14h00
Synopsis
Stonehenge Decoded examines British archaeologist Mike Parker Pearson’s ground-breaking theory, one that plas this ancient monument at the centre of one the largest prehistoric religious complexes in the world.
His team is unearthing surprising new evidence, supporting a radical new vision of Stonehenge and the people who built it.
His theory suggests that the stone circle was at the centre of one of the largest prehistoric religious complexes in the world. Parker Pearson and his team uncover the first evidence of a 4,500 year-old lost settlement – with at least 300 houses, it is the largest Stone Age settlement ever found in northern Europe.
At its centre lie the remains of a near replica of Stonehenge built of wood. He believes that Stonehenge was built to house the spirits of the dead while the wood circle represented the living.
Further evidence suggests thousands of people gathered here at the summer and winter solstices.
Through CGI, dramatic recreations and narration by Donald Sutherland, viewers are transported to the prehistoric world of Stonehenge and provided startling revelations about this archaeological mystery.