A large crowd partied through the night and into the morning, with special managed access to the Stonehenge stone circle extended until 8:30 a.m. on Sunday as people celebrated the summer solstice.
Stonehenge is considered a place of worship by modern-era 'Earth-based' or 'old' religions such Neo-Druids and PagansImage: Alberto Pezzali/AP Photo/picture alliance
"As the sun rose on the year's longest day, we welcomed more than 20,000 people to celebrate together, with thousands more joining via our livestream from across the wolrd," English Heritage, which administers the Stonehenge site, said on Sunday.
On June 21, the Earth's Northern Hemisphere is titled furthest towards the sun, resulting in the longest day of the year. The reverse is the case in the Southern Hemisphere, which has its longest day on December 21.
The prehistoric megalithic stone circle on Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire in southwest England appears to have been built to align with the sun's path on these days.
