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Hundreds in Stonehenge: Participants should only appear without Covid-19 symptoms
Photo: JON ROWLEY / EPA
People crowd between the gigantic blocks of stone: Despite the rising number of corona infections in Great Britain, hundreds have followed the winter solstice at the Stone Age monument of Stonehenge.
No visitors were admitted to the event last year due to the pandemic.
This year it's different: "It's an open-air event and we strictly adhere to government guidelines," curator Heather Sebire told BBC Radio Wiltshire.
Druids, modern pagans and esotericists
The imposing stone circle in the south-west of England is oriented towards the sunrise of the winter and summer solstice.
Some of the famous megalithic stone circles were once erected in such a way that the sun only shines through at noon on these days.
“The people who built Stonehenge were farmers, they grew their own food, knew the days were getting longer, things would get better, and with a little luck their crops would grow again,” Sebire said.
In addition to druids, modern pagans and esotericists, the event also attracts numerous other visitors.
The Office for the Protection of Nature or Cultural Monuments called on them to only come if they had no Covid 19 symptoms.
They should also do an antigen test and wear masks before they arrive - but only indoors and on shuttle buses.
Those who still did not feel comfortable with it could watch an online broadcast of the event instead.
bbr / dpa