Re: Could Stone henge be a mathmatical equation?

Hi Susan,

Indeed, your son is a bright cookie!  He's quite right, the stones at 
Stonehenge - and other structures of that kind - look like the pi symbol.  
Pi, however, was not linked to the architectural design of Stonehenge...  

Pi is a letter of the greek alphabet - the equivalent of the letter "p".  It 
is the sixteenth letter of the Greek alphabet, and is the symbol used to 
denote the ration of the circumference of a circle to the diameter.  The 
greeks came up with it, years and years after stonehenge was built.  
Stonehenge's design does look like a circle with a series of "pi" symbols 
around it - but they are not linked. Whether or not Stonehenge is a big 
mathematical equation?  Well, we don't really think so.  Such theories were 
brought up in the past, but none really bloomed.   

Stonehenge today is not what it was centuries ago.  Today, it is but merely 
the remains of a large group of standing stones on Salisbury Plain, and was 
probably built between 1800 and 1400 BCE,  When complete, Stonehenge 
consisted of two concentric circles of tooled stones, surrounding two 
concentric horseshoeshaped groups, the whole surrounded by a circular ditch 
300 ft in diameter.  

Those top stones that look like the top of the letter Pi are caled lintel 
stones - the fitting of which required great technical skill.  

What was Stonehenge for?  Well, we don't know, but archaeologists seem to 
believe that it marks sunrise and sunset at particular points of the 
calendar by the alignment of the stones.  It might likely have been a 
sanctuary for the worship of the sun, perhaps also an observatory.  

But the link to the letter or number Pi, or mathematical equations is not 
there - at least not in the pure mathematical sense.  It *IS* linked to 
mathematics in a way, though, if it truly is an astronomical observatory and 
calendar.  At that point, yes, in a way, what you see is the product of 
ancient mathematics!  Congratulate your son on his observation - I hadn't 
noticed it in quite that light before!  There are many good books on ancient 
monuments for young people his age - and you might want to introduce him to 
art history.  Examining ancient art and interpreting paintings and designs 
would likely be something he would enjoy since he has a great sense of 
observation, and would be a great way to learn more about ancient history!

Best wishes,

Helene