7 mysterious stone circles scattered around the world

With the naked eye, you can feel the large scale of the ancient megalithic Rujm el-Hiri on the Golan Heights, the southern mountains of East Lebanon. The structure consists of a large basalt circle and four smaller concentric circles. Discovered in 1967 by Israeli archaeologists, Rujm el-Hiri dates back to 3,000 BC. No one knows who built these strange stone circles.

Moel Ty Uchaf is a stone circle near the village of Llandrillo, Denbighshire, Wales. The circle has a diameter of 12 m is made up of 41 surrounding ancient stones. Although it is smaller in size than other famous buildings, this circle is almost perfect.

Stonehenge circle is created from special stones on the Salisbury plain, England. As Europe's most famous prehistoric monument, Stonehenge was built at the end of the Neolithic period, around 2,500 years BC. Along with the nearby Avebury circle, this building is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. How to move the giant rocks from Pembrokeshire here and erect them is still a mystery.

Located on the west coast of Lewis Island in the Hebridean archipelago, the standing Calanais rocks (also known as Callanish's rocks) create a majestic sight. The prehistoric building is made of shale and is more than 5,000 years old. Some scientists believe that this place was once used as an observatory for ancient people.

The 7,000-year-old Dolmen of Guadalperal megalithic monument in the Extremadura region, Spain, attracts attention for its reappearance after being submerged for decades under a reservoir . About 100 ancient stones are arranged in an oval shape. Scientists guess they were used in tomb rituals.

Sine Rightene in the Republic of Senegal is a prime example of the famous megalithic monuments of West Africa. Sine Rightene, Wanar, Wassu and Kerbatch are the four groups of the Senegambian rock circle. In which, Sine Rightene is the largest complex with 52 vertical stone circles. The monoliths have been carefully mined to move here. This site also used to be the place where ancient people held their funerals.

Castlerigg, one of Britain's oldest circles, is located high up in the Cumbria region. It consists of 38 stones erected by Neolithic farming communities around 4,500 years ago. This building could be built as a place for people to meet.

Marvin Fry

Update 30 August 2020