News

Pembrokeshire quarries are the source of Stonehenge rock

Published

9 years ago

December 7, 2015

Tom Sinclair

Discovery: Bluestone at Stonehenge came from Craig Rhos-y-felin.

GEOLOGISTS have found that rocks at Stonehenge came from two quarries in North Pembrokeshire.

The quarries at Carn Goedog and Craig Rhos-y-felin have been identified as the source of the prehistoric monument which is located in Wiltshire, England.

The team of scientists includes researchers from UCL, University of Manchester, Bournemouth University, University of Southampton, Amgueddfa Cymru – National Museum Wales, and Dyfed Archaeological Trust.

New research by the team published in Antiquity presents detailed evidence of prehistoric quarrying in the Preseli hills in Pembrokeshire, helping to answer long-standing questions about why, when and how Stonehenge was built.

Geologists have known since the 1920s that the bluestones were brought to Stonehenge from somewhere in the Preseli Hills, but only now has there been collaboration with archaeologists to locate and excavate the actual quarries from which they came.

Director of the project, Professor Mike Parker Pearson (UCL Institute of Archaeology), said: “This has been a wonderful opportunity for geologists and archaeologists to work together. The geologists have been able to lead us to the actual outcrops where Stonehenge’s stones were extracted.”

The Stonehenge bluestones are of volcanic and igneous rocks, the most common of which are called dolerite and rhyolite.

Dr Richard Bevins (Amgueddfa Cymru – National Museum Wales) and Dr Rob Ixer (UCL and University of Leicester) have identified the outcrop of Carn Goedog as the main source of Stonehenge’s ‘spotted dolerite’ bluestones and the outcrop of Craig Rhos-y-felin as a source for one of the ‘rhyolite’ bluestones.

Radiocarbon-dating of burnt hazelnuts and charcoal from the quarry-workers’ camp fires reveals that there were several occurrences of megalith-quarrying at these outcrops. Stonehenge was built during the Neolithic period, between 4,000 to 5,000 years ago. Both of the quarries in Preseli were exploited in the Neolithic, and Craig Rhos-y-felin was also quarried in the Bronze Age, around 4,000 years ago.

“We have dates of around 3400 BC for Craig Rhos-y-felin and 3200 BC for Carn Goedog, which is intriguing because the bluestones didn’t get put up at Stonehenge until around 2900 BC” said Professor Parker Pearson. “It could have taken those Neolithic stone-draggers nearly 500 years to get them to Stonehenge, but that’s pretty improbable in my view. It’s more likely that the stones were first used in a local monument, somewhere near the quarries, that was then dismantled and dragged off to Wiltshire.”

The megalith quarries are on the north side of the Preseli hills, and this location undermines previous theories about how the bluestones were transported from Wales to Stonehenge. Previous writers have often suggested that bluestones were taken southwards from the hills to Milford Haven and then floated on boats or rafts, but this now seems unlikely.

“The only logical direction for the bluestones to go was to the north then either by sea around St David’s Head or eastwards overland through the valleys along the route that is now the A40” said Professor Parker Pearson. “Personally I think that the overland route is more likely. Each of the 80 monoliths weighed less than 2 tons, so teams of people or oxen could have managed this. We know from examples in India and elsewhere in Asia that single stones this size can even be carried on wooden lattices by groups of 60 – they didn’t even have to drag them if they didn’t want to.”

Phil Bennett, Pembrokeshire Coast National Park Authority’s Culture and Heritage Manager, said: “This project is making a wonderful contribution to our knowledge of the National Park’s importance in prehistory.”

The new discoveries may also help to understand why Stonehenge was built. Parker Pearson and his team believe that the bluestones were erected at Stonehenge around 2900 BC, long before the giant sarsens were put up around 2500 BC.

“Stonehenge was a Welsh monument from its very beginning. If we can find the original monument in Wales from which it was built, we will finally be able to solve the mystery of why Stonehenge was built and why some of its stones were brought so far”, said Professor Parker Pearson.

Further excavations are planned for 2016.

Community

Campaign launched to save Oriel y Parc art gallery

Published

1 hour ago

April 18, 2025

Tom Sinclair

A PETITION has been launched to save Oriel y Parc, the landscape gallery in St Davids, amid fears that its future as a dedicated fine art space is under threat.

Concerned members of the community and supporters of the arts have rallied against proposals by the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park Authority (PCNPA) to repurpose parts of the gallery, which currently houses important artworks including those by the renowned British artist Graham Sutherland.

Campaigners say that the authority’s plan to downgrade the Pembrokeshire Landscape Gallery and convert it into a National Park Discovery Centre represents a significant departure from its original purpose. The gallery was created using £3.3 million in public and EU funding and was designed specifically to showcase the landscape and art of Wales.

The petition, launched on Change.org by the Pembrokeshire Landscape Gallery Working Group, has already attracted 519 verified signatures. It calls on PCNPA to reinstate the full gallery space for continuous exhibitions from the National Collection and maintain the rotating display of Graham Sutherland’s works, a core feature of the gallery since its opening.

Dozens of people have signed the petition in recent hours, with local residents and visitors alike voicing their support. Notable recent signers include Joanna Burke, Anne Crowley, Joanne Miles, Phil Thomas, and Patricia Karen Rathbone.

Campaigners argue that the decline in visitor numbers in recent years is not due to public disinterest in art, but rather to the lack of high-profile exhibitions since 2018. They point to previous successes—such as exhibitions of works by Graham Sutherland and John Constable—that attracted tens of thousands of visitors, boosted the local economy, and enriched the cultural life of the region.

Speaking to BBC Wales Today on March 27, Tegryn Jones, Chief Executive of PCNPA, defended the changes, saying:

“The gallery has to change. You know, 15 years – all organisations evolve and develop; their audience tastes develop during that time. I think we would be rightly criticised if we hadn’t evolved and tried to meet the needs of current visitors and current residents.”

While campaigners acknowledge that change is necessary, they say that abandoning the gallery’s artistic mission would be a mistake.

“The building was purpose-built to house art,” the petition states. “Instead of abandoning its original purpose, we urge PCNPA to work with the National Museum of Wales and the wider arts community to restore and reinvigorate Oriel y Parc’s programme.”

The petition also stresses the gallery’s importance to schools, families, artists and tourists, and warns that converting it into a discovery centre would strip St Davids of one of its most valuable cultural assets.

Supporters are calling on the public to sign the petition and urge decision makers to protect the architectural integrity and artistic role of Oriel y Parc for future generations.

To sign the petition or learn more, visit Change.org and search “Save Oriel y Parc”.

Crime

Petition calling for justice for wrongfully convicted man passes 39,000 signatures

Published

1 hour ago

April 18, 2025

Tom Sinclair

A CAMPAIGN to secure compensation for Brian Buckle – a man who spent over five years in prison before being cleared of all charges – has now gained more than 39,000 signatures.

Mr Buckle was convicted in 2017 of 16 counts of rape and sexual assault, but in 2022 the Court of Appeal quashed his conviction after new evidence emerged. At a retrial, it took a jury less than an hour to find him not guilty on all counts.

Despite this, the Ministry of Justice has refused to award Mr Buckle compensation for the time he spent in prison, citing a requirement to “prove innocence beyond reasonable doubt” – a standard which critics say is almost impossible to meet.

The petition, hosted on Change.org and backed by his legal team and supporters, has been signed by more than 39,000 people. Although widely shared and supported, the petition is not on the official UK Parliament petitions site and therefore cannot by itself trigger a debate in the House of Commons.

However, Mr Buckle’s case has already been raised in Parliament. On March 19, 2025, Ceredigion MP Ben Lake used a Westminster Hall debate on miscarriage of justice compensation to highlight the case, describing the situation as “a moral and legal failure”.

Mr Lake told fellow MPs: “Brian Buckle was imprisoned for over five years for crimes he did not commit. He lost his liberty, his livelihood, and missed key moments in his daughter’s life. He was cleared of all charges, and yet the Ministry of Justice says he has not proven his innocence enough to be compensated.”

Mr Buckle’s barrister, Stephen Vullo KC, said the current system is broken: “The bar is so high that hardly anyone can jump it. If the Court of Appeal quashes a conviction and a jury later finds a person not guilty on all counts, what more should be required?”

The Ministry of Justice acknowledged Mr Buckle’s acquittal, but insisted that his application did not meet the strict criteria under Section 133 of the Criminal Justice Act 1988. In a letter, the Ministry stated: “You are presumed to be and remain innocent of the charges brought against you. However, we do not consider that you have demonstrated this innocence beyond reasonable doubt.”

Mr Buckle said the process has left him feeling re-traumatised: “I’m not asking for millions. I just want the injustice I suffered to be acknowledged. The compensation wouldn’t even cover my lost wages, but it would help me start to rebuild my life.”

His family raised and spent significant funds to secure the evidence needed to clear his name – including selling his father-in-law’s house to pay for legal fees and investigations. Tragically, his father-in-law died before the retrial.

Campaigners are now calling for the law to be changed so that those who are cleared of serious crimes following a wrongful conviction are entitled to automatic compensation.

The Herald understands that while Mr Buckle’s Change.org petition cannot trigger a debate in Parliament, there remains the possibility that further political pressure could result in formal policy review or a government rethink.

Crime

Council secures 164 liability orders for unpaid council tax

Published

2 hours ago

April 18, 2025

Tom Sinclair

HAVERFORDWEST Magistrates’ Court has granted liability orders against more than 160 individuals who failed to pay their council tax, following a mass application by Pembrokeshire County Council.

In a hearing held on Monday (Apr 14), the local authority brought a complaint under regulation 34 of the Council Tax (Administration and Enforcement) Regulations 1992, seeking liability orders in 256 cases.

The court granted 164 liability orders, which allow the council to take enforcement action such as instructing bailiffs or deducting money directly from wages or benefits. A further 40 accounts were settled before the hearing, and 52 cases were withdrawn.

None of the defendants were present in court and none were in custody.

The Herald understands that a full schedule of names and case outcomes has been provided separately by the local authority.