LONDON (AP) – Thousands of druids, pagans and new -age enthusiasts greeted Tuesday’s summer solstice at Stonehenge, the longest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere.
About 6,000 people gathered at an ancient stone circle in southern England to watch the sunrise at 4:49 a.m. on a clear and sunny morning, local police said.
After 2019, this will be the first time entertainers have gathered near the Neolithic monument to celebrate the sunset. Sunrise streaming was released in 2020 and 2021 due to the online corovirus pandemic.
The people raised their hands in the air and rejoiced as the sun rose on the horizon. Some performed pagan rituals and sang songs, while many embraced the ancient stones during the ceremony. Many more woke up earlier and went there just to keep the vibe.
Police said the atmosphere was “calm” and only two were arrested, one for assault and one for possession of drugs.
English Heritage, which traverses Stonehenge between 400 historic sites, said 170,000 people around the world also watched Eclipse Day online on Tuesday.
“We are pleased to bring people back this year and also broadcast the incident live to thousands of people around the world,” said Nicholas Tesker, director of English Heritage at Stonehenge.
Stonehenge was built between 5000 and 3500 BC in southwestern England, on a windy plain, by Neolithic culture that worshiped the sun. Experts still debate its purpose, but it is so simple that during the summer solstice, the sun shines behind the stone grain and the sun’s rays move to the center of the circle.
A summer solar eclipse occurs when one of the Earth’s poles is closest to the Sun. The Northern Hemisphere summer solstice marked the days with the longest daylight hours of the year and also officially marked the start of ‘summer.
Source: Huffpost
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