This work comes from the book The Oldest Road An Exploration of the Ridgeway first published in 1975 by Woldwood House Ltd, with text by J R L Andersen. Avebury is a Megalithic monument, consisting of an immense circular bank surrounded standing stones. For centuries the stones were ‘lost’ and were rediscovered by John Aubrey in about 1648 whilst out riding to hounds. In the intervening years many of the stones were broken up for building. The site was acquired by the National Trust in 1942.