--- description: The buried stones may have been put in place 4,500 years ago for ritual sacrifices title: Stonehenge: Scientists Discover 90 Standing Stones Nearby image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt3a6da3fdf8e672da/6988627ce20a870d90a8d1a5/superhenge.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [World](/section/world/) ## World Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [U.K.](/tag/u-k/) ## U.K. Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Scientists Discover Up to 100 Giant Standing Stones Near Stonehenge by [Tara John](/author/tara-john/) ## Tara John Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Sep 7, 2015 12:39 PM CUT  Illustration of the recently uncovered "superhenge" site located two miles from Stonehenge, Wiltshire, England. Illustration of the recently uncovered "superhenge" site located two miles from Stonehenge, Wiltshire, England.Ludwig Boltzmann Institute by [Tara John](/author/tara-john/) ## Tara John Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Sep 7, 2015 12:39 PM CUT Archaeologists believe that giant stones found buried in an area five times the size of Britain’s most famous prehistoric monument, Stonehenge, were probably part of a ritual sacrifice site. The 4,500 year-old stones, believed to be made from local stone, were found underneath 3ft of earth, two miles away from Stonehenge in Wiltshire, [reports the _BBC_](http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-wiltshire-34156673 "undefined"). Researchers from the Stonehenge Hidden Landscapes team found up to 100 stones using geophysical imaging technology and remote sensing. They are also creating an underground map of the area. “We don’t think there’s anything quite like this anywhere else in the world….This is completely new and the scale is extraordinary,” lead researcher Vince Gaffney, of the University of Bradford, told the _BBC_. “The hidden treasure trove of the Stonehenge landscape just begs the question about why are all these incredible structures here” says Andy Rhind-Tutt, chairman of nearby Amesbury Museum. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4024293/britain-stonehenge/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4024293/britain-stonehenge/"},"headline":"Scientists Discover Up to 100 Giant Standing Stones Near Stonehenge","datePublished":"2015-09-07T12:39:49.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-22T10:44:01.610Z","description":"The buried stones may have been put in place 4,500 years ago for ritual sacrifices","url":"https://time.com/4024293/britain-stonehenge/","keywords":["U.K."],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt3a6da3fdf8e672da/6988627ce20a870d90a8d1a5/superhenge.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Tara John","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/tara-john/"}],"articleSection":"World","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt3a6da3fdf8e672da/6988627ce20a870d90a8d1a5/superhenge.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"superhenge stone henge england","caption":"superhenge stone henge england","creditText":"Ludwig Boltzmann Institute","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/world/","name":"World"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/u-k/","name":"U.K."}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4024293/britain-stonehenge/","name":"Scientists Discover Up to 100 Giant Standing Stones Near Stonehenge"}}]}] ```