Dawn of the Druids Photograph by Kieran Doherty, Reuters Undaunted by Tuesday’s dreary skies, a Druid at the United Kingdom’s ancient Stonehenge monument prayerfully greets the Northern Hemisphere’s summer solstice. This first day of summer and longest day of the year has long been observed by cultures worldwide. At Stonehenge, celebrants in the center of the standing stones can still watch the summer solstice sun rise over the Heel Stone, just outside the stone circles. This year British Druids celebrated the solstice for the first time as members of an officially recognized religion, following a controversial vote by the national Charity Commission for England and Wales last fall. —With reporting by Ker Than

Dawn of the Druids
Photograph by Kieran Doherty, Reuters

Undaunted by Tuesday’s dreary skies, a Druid at the United Kingdom’s ancient Stonehenge monument prayerfully greets the Northern Hemisphere’s summer solstice. This first day of summer and longest day of the year has long been observed by cultures worldwide.

At Stonehenge, celebrants in the center of the standing stones can still watch the summer solstice sun rise over the Heel Stone, just outside the stone circles.

This year British Druids celebrated the solstice for the first time as members of an officially recognized religion, following a controversial vote by the national Charity Commission for England and Wales last fall.

—With reporting by Ker Than

146 notes | Tags: photo  holiday  summer  stonehenge  people  
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