Summer Solstice Sunrise over Stonehenge. Photo: Andrew Dunn (CC)
Today marks the summer solstice – the day of the year when the Earth’s and the moon’s axial tilt is most inclined towards the sun. It’s a day of celebration around the world, as exemplified by the English at Stonehenge, where Steven Morris reports for the Guardian that the usual mix of pagans and partiers are in attendance:
The summer solstice is meant to be a night and dawn of peace, love and amazement. But not all of those attending the celebrations at Stonehenge entered into the spirit of the event.
Druids, pagans and revellers watched as two men, one shirtless, staged a fist fight at the ancient monument in Wiltshire.
While the majority of the 18,000 people who attended the solstice celebrations were well-behaved, 20 arrests and almost 50 drug seizures were made.
Photographer David Hedges, who witnessed the fight, said: “They were sparring for a few minutes before they really started throwing punches.”
Spectators surrounded the pair and a couple tried to break it up before the police arrived.
The 20 arrests included 11 for drugs offences and five for public order offences. Superintendent Gavin Williams of Wiltshire police said most of the attendees “came to see the sunrise in the spirit of the event. Although it was disappointing that some individuals chose to bring drugs with them, they were dealt with robustly.”
Fewer people attended than in recent years, partly due to the damp weather, perhaps, but also because the event fell at the start of the week.
But Arthur Pendragon, a well-known druid who purports to be a modern incarnation of the legendary king, said both those who were there for faith reasons and the many others who attend just for a good time – including plenty who stopped off on the way to Glastonbury – seemed to have enjoyed the night and dawn…
[continues at the Guardian]
