Sun and stones

Alignments

The main axis of the stones is aligned upon the solstitial axis.⁠¹

At midsummer, the sun rises over the horizon to the north-east, close to the Heel Stone.⁠¹ If you were to stand in the middle of the stone circle on Midsummer's Day, you would see the sun rise just to the left of the Heel Stone.⁠²

At midwinter, the sun sets in the south-west, in the gap between the two tallest trilithons, one of which has now fallen.⁠¹

The whole layout of Stonehenge is therefore designed in relation to the solstices, which are the extreme limits of the sun's movement.⁠² English Heritage says Stonehenge is likely to have been much more than a calendar.⁠²

There were two original entrances to the enclosure: a wide one to the north-east and a smaller one on the southern side.⁠¹ Immediately outside the north-east entrance is the Heel Stone, a huge unshaped sarsen boulder.⁠¹

Whether it was used by the Druids (Celtic priests) is doubtful, but present-day Druids gather there every year to hail the midsummer sunrise.⁠³

Alignment with the sun is not, by itself, a full account of why the monument was built. See why it was built.