Stonehenge's 6-ton altar stone may have traveled from Scotland by glacier

September 23, 2026 at 03:52 PM2 min

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Researchers from Sheffield Hallam University and Curtin University propose that glaciers during Britain's last ice age may have transported Stonehenge's six-tonne Altar Stone from Scotland's Orcadian Basin as far as Dogger Bank in the North Sea. The stone would then have been moved by people hundreds of kilometers to Salisbury Plain. The study combines mineral grain dating with computer models of ancient ice sheets to reconstruct the possible route.

Key Facts

The Altar Stone is a six-tonne sandstone megalith originating from northeast Scotland, roughly 700 km (435 miles) from Stonehenge.
Glacier models suggest ice could have carried the stone from the Orcadian Basin to Dogger Bank in the North Sea.
From Dogger Bank, people would still have needed to move the stone hundreds of kilometers to Salisbury Plain.
The study was co-led by Dr. Remy Veness of Sheffield Hallam University and Dr. Anthony Clarke of Curtin University.

Glacial Transport Hypothesis

Researchers combined mineral grain dating with computer models of ancient ice sheets to test whether glaciers could have carried the Altar Stone south from Scotland. The models indicate that ice during Britain's last ice age may have transported the stone from the Orcadian Basin as far as Dogger Bank in the North Sea. Dr. Remy Veness, co-lead author from Sheffield Hallam University, said the research gives a new plausible explanation for part of the journey to Salisbury Plain.

Doggerland as a Waypoint

Doggerland was a Neolithic landscape off the east coast of England, now submerged beneath the North Sea, with no natural rock outcrops. Any large stones found there would have had to arrive from elsewhere, potentially carried by glaciers. The researchers suggest the Altar Stone could have been deposited in the Dogger Bank region by ice and later moved by people as sea levels rose. From Doggerland, the stone could have been transported toward the Berkshire Ridgeway, regarded as the oldest road in Europe, which was in use around the time Stonehenge was built.

Multi-Stage Journey

Co-lead author Dr. Anthony Clarke of Curtin University said the evidence points toward a complicated journey involving multiple stages rather than one simple route. Dr. Veness noted that the findings could imply the people of Doggerland attached cultural significance to the Altar Stone long before it was incorporated into Stonehenge. Hypothetically, the stone could have been significant enough to be moved at least twice: first to save it from rising sea levels, then to its final resting place on Salisbury Plain.