Druids celebrate summer solstice at Stonehenge
An eclectic mix of sun worshippers, hippies and pagans came out in force to celebrate the annual festival, along with many who were merely curious to experience the event.
English Heritage said more than 18,000 revellers from across the globe gathered to witness the traditional Pagan ceremonies and the sunrise on the longest day of the year.
Druid Arthur Uther Pendragon, formally known as John Rothwell, conducted the service at Stonehenge at the prehistoric site in Wiltshire which is meant to reconnect people with land and the seasons.
The word solstice comes from the Latin phrase for "sun stands still".
The Sun's passage through the sky appears to stop, with it seeming to rise and set in the same two places for several days.
Then the arc begins growing longer and higher in the sky, reaching its peak at the summer solstice. The solstices happen twice a year because the Earth is tilted by 23.5 degrees as it orbits the sun.
