STONEHENGE, England — Thousands of neo-Druids, New Age followers and the merely curious flocked to Stonehenge on Saturday to await the sunrise over the prehistoric monument and celebrate the longest day of the year. The ancient stone circle in southern England is the site of an annual night-long partyor religious ceremony, depending on perspective — marking the northern hemisphere’s summer solstice.
“They come for a complete range of reasons,” said archaeologist Dave Batchelor of English Heritage, the site’s caretaker. “Some belong to the Druidic religion and think of it as a temple, others think of it as a place of their ancestors, or for tranquility.”
Stonehenge, which sits on Salisbury Plain about 80 miles southwest of London, is one of Britain’s most popular tourist attractions, visited by more than 750,000 people a year. More than 20,000 people are expected to greet the sunrise today. The Associated Press
