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Phase
3a.
Dating
from phase three is imprecise, but during the early Bronze Age at some
point before 1500 BCE, the original bluestone circle was removed and
replaced with an inner horseshoe and an outer circle of immense sarsen
trilithons. Two additional standing sarsens were added at the entrance
to the enclosure.
Sarsen
is a geological term referring to sandstone boulders carried by glaciation.
Like the bluestones, the sarsens were likely transported from the nearby
countryside. Trilithon is a term derived from the Greek tri-lithos,
lit. "three stones". It refers to two upright stones linked across the
top with a horizontal lintel. At Stonehenge, the trilithons are impressively
large. The tallest stones, weighing over 45 tons, support enormous lintels
over seven meters (22 feet) above the ground.
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