An analysis of rocks and bones unearthed around Stonehenge supports the claim that the mysterious ancient landmark served as a kind of "Neolithic Lourdes," drawing prehistoric pilgrims from around Europe, two researchers reported Monday.

Professors Geoffrey Wainwright and Timothy Darvill have long suspected that Stonehenge was viewed as a place of healing thousands of years ago, and they said their recent excavation at the site provided new evidence for their hypothesis.

"We found several reasons to believe that the stones were built as part of a belief in a healing process," Wainwright told journalists assembled at London's Society of Antiquaries.

Other researchers have said the stone circle apparently started out as a burial site for ancient kings or chieftains - although they acknowledge that Stonehenge could have taken on additional significance through the centuries, as a sacred place as well as an ancient astronomical observatory. Such a scenario wouldn't necessarily rule out the "healing hypothesis" set forth by Wainwright and Darvill.

The two researchers, who were the first to conduct an excavation at Stonehenge in more than 40 years, said the key to their theory was the site's double circle of bluestones - a rare rock known to geologists as spotted dolomite - which lie at the center of the monument.

Dragged or floated on rafts from Pembrokeshire in Wales to Salisbury Plain in southern England, the bluestones were prized for their healing properties - as evidenced by the small mountain of flakes the scientists uncovered during their dig, Wainwright said.

Pieces of bluestone ended up buried in tombs across the area, a testament to people's fascination with the rocks, Wainwright said.