The world of Stonehenge at the British Museum: a ‘fiercely emotional exhibition’
The fascinating and revelatory show charts the period between 4000 BC and 1000 BC

“Stonehenge is perhaps the most famous monument in England,” said Melanie McDonagh in the London Evening Standard. Built around 2500 BC – about the same time as the Great Pyramid of Giza – it is a “huge, haunting edifice” that continues to baffle even the experts to this day.
And while we may never know precisely why it was built, modern scholarship can tell us a lot about the world in which this mysterious, monolithic site on the Salisbury Plain was erected. We know, for instance, that Britain was “surprisingly connected” in that era, and that it was possible to walk across parts of the North Sea to continental Europe, “enabling the passage of men, beliefs, wild animals, stone, artefacts and skills”.
The world of Stonehenge, the British Museum’s fascinating and revelatory new exhibition, plunges the visitor straight into this murky pre-history. For obvious reasons, Stonehenge itself could not be transported, “but it does bring us artefacts and remains from our remote ancestors from across Europe to help us grasp something of their beliefs and practices”.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The show charts the period between 4000 BC and 1000 BC, bringing together an astonishing array of objects – from a horned helmet made of deer skulls to gold metalwork, to more familiar items such as “little wooden dolls” and children’s balls.
The “sheer beauty” of the exhibits here is “breathtaking”, said Richard Morrison in The Times. One moment, you’re looking at the Nebra Sky Disc, a gold and bronze disc from northern Germany thought to be “the world’s oldest material depiction of cosmic phenomena”; the next, a recently-discovered chalk drum that was buried alongside three children in a Yorkshire grave. Perhaps most spectacular of all is a 4,000-year-old timber circle known as “Seahenge”, which was unearthed on a Norfolk beach in 1998 and may have been used for ritual purposes.
Such a collection of treasures “is unlikely to be assembled under the same roof again”. Taken together, they also tell a story about an era “far less primordial than we thought”. If it began in neolithic times, with hunter-gatherers, “communal feasts and rituals”, it ended during the Bronze Age, an epoch in which “a Europe-wide network of communities” exchanged “vibrant links, shared beliefs and a sophisticated artistic culture”, forging “exquisite artefacts” to wear and carry.
Trade flourished as never before during the period, said Jonathan Jones in The Guardian. Alas, so too did war: the exhibition culminates with evidence of the fearsome conflicts that began to take place across Europe around the time of Stonehenge’s construction. We see “shattered human remains”, “stunningly sophisticated Bronze Age armour” and the remains of a man buried on Salisbury Plain “with arrowheads in his spine”.
This is a “fiercely emotional exhibition, full of love for the people of the distant past”. We see the remains of a party at which early farmers and hunter-gatherers ate venison and beef together. We learn how some of our antecedents lived in “cosy domesticity”, as evidenced by “snug houses with stone shelf units” discovered in Orkney. Moments like these add up to a “magical” display that “uncovers a rich and strange world under our own feet”. This is “a knockout epic” of a show.
British Museum, London WC1 (020-7323 8000, britishmuseum.org). Until 17 July
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
'More must be done'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
Are masked ICE agents America's new secret police?
Today's Big Question Critics say masks undermine trust in law enforcement
-
The last words and final moments of 40 presidents
The Explainer Some are eloquent quotes worthy of the holders of the highest office in the nation, and others... aren't
-
The tourist flood in the Mediterranean: can it be stemmed?
Talking Point Finger-pointing at Airbnb or hotel owners obscures the root cause of overtourism in holiday hotspots: unmanageable demand
-
Thai fish pie with crispy turmeric potatoes recipe
The Week Recommends Tasty twist on the Lancashire hot pot is given a golden glow
-
Lovestuck: a 'warm-hearted' musical with a 'powerhouse score'
The Week Recommends Team behind the hit podcast My Dad Wrote a Porno have created a hilarious show about a disastrous viral Tinder date
-
Outrageous: glossy Mitford family drama is full of 'fun, fashion and froth'
The Week Recommends Adaptation of Mary Lovell's biography examines the scandalous lives of the aristocratic sisters
-
F1: The Movie – a fun but formulaic 'corporate tie-in'
Talking Point Brad Pitt stars as a washed up racing driver returning three decades after a near-fatal crash
-
Lost Boys: a 'sobering' journey to the heart of the manosphere
The Week Recommends James Bloodworth examines the 'cranks and hucksters' making money through 'masculine discontent'
-
6 productivity-ready homes with great offices
Feature Featuring an office with a gas fireplace in Oregon and a shared workspace with wraparound windows in Massachusetts
-
Critics' choice: Carrying the flag
Feature The best barbecue in town, Bradley Cooper's cheesesteak restaurant, and more