In pictures: Stonehenge marks Summer solstice
- Published
Thousands of people gathered at Stonehenge in Wiltshire to watch the sunrise, but dense cloud kept the first rays of sunshine hidden at the start of the longest day of the year.
The Summer and Winter solstice's are celebrated each year by pagans and druids across the UK, with the largest gatherings at Wiltshire's ancient monuments of Stonehenge and in nearby Avebury.
A crowd of 21,000 people were at Stonehenge to welcome the sunrise, with police saying 22 arrests had been made for drugs-related offences.
Solstice means a stopping or standing still of the sun and has had spiritual significance for thousands of years.
Stonehenge is believed to have been used as an important religious site 4,000 years ago. Recent pagan celebrations at the henge began in the 20th Century.
A number of people arrived early to spend the night near the giant stones, with police reporting 2,000 people on site at 21:30 BST on Thursday.
By 09:00 BST security guards had started to move people away so the clean-up operation could begin and the ancient stones be left to stand alone once again.
- Published21 June 2013