The most notable antiquity of Great Britain, vulgarly called Stone-Heng, on Salisbury Plain, restored

Creator

Jones, Inigo, 1573-1652

Date

• 1725

Publisher

London: Printed for D. Browne, jr. [etc.]

Summary

• By Inigo Jones ... To which are added, the Chorea gigantum, or Stone-Heng restored to the Danes, by Doctor Charleton; and Mr. Webb’s Vindication of Stone-Heng restored, in answer to Dr. Charleton’s reflections; with observations upon the orders and rules of architecture in use among the ancient Romans. Before the whole are prefixed, certain memoirs relating to the life of Inigo Jones; with his effigies, engrav’d by Hollar; as also Dr. Charleton’s, by P. Lombart; and four new views of Stone-Heng, in its present situation: with above twenty other copper-plates, and a compleat index to the entire collection. Title in red and black within line border; head and tail pieces; initials. The frontispiece is a portrait of Inigo Jones, from a painting by Van Dyck. Each of the three parts (works) has special title-page reading "The second edition. Jones's "Stone-Heng restored" is edited by John Webb from rough notes left by the author.</br></br>Stonehenge, the monumental stone circle located in southern England, has provoked wonder and curiosity for centuries, perhaps millennia. A portion of 17th century speculation is reflected in a 1725 compilation of earlier publications by Inigo Jones, Walter Charleton and John Webb, with a lengthy descriptive title: "The most notable antiquity of Great Britain, vulgarly called Stone-Heng, on Salisbury Plain, restored, by Inigo Jones ... To which are added, the Chorea gigantum, or Stone-Heng restored to the Danes, by Doctor Charleton; and Mr. Webb's Vindication of Stone-Heng restored, in answer to Dr. Charleton's reflections; with observations upon the orders and rules of architecture in use among the ancient Romans. Before the whole are prefixed, certain memoirs relating to the life of Inigo Jones; with his effigies, engrav'd by Hollar; as also Dr. Charleton's, by P. Lombart; and four new views of Stone-Heng, in its present situation: with above twenty other copper-plates, and a compleat index to the entire collection" (London, 1725). In 1620, King James I commissioned a measured survey of the monument and charged court surveyor and architect Inigo Jones (1573-1652) to investigate its history. After Jones' death, his executor and colleague in architecture, John Webb, compiled and published Jones' observations in 1655. Jones considered the design and execution of Stonehenge too sophisticated for the native Britons and concluded it was of Roman construction. Walter Charleton rebutted that theory in 1663, crediting construction to the Danes; and John Webb defended the Roman temple theory two years later. During the 18th century, with interest in classical architecture and antiquities at the forefront (consider the publications of Desgodets, Caylus and Robert Adams also digitized by Univ. of Wisconsin-Madison libraries), the Stonehenge arguments were reprinted in a single volume, supplemented with engraved illustration plates and a biography of Inigo Jones. The original volume digitized here is held at UW-Madison Memorial Library Special Collections.