AN extraordinary hidden complex of archaeological monuments has been uncovered around Stonehenge using hi-tech methods of scanning below the Earth's surface.

The finds, dating back 6,000 years, include evidence of 17 previously unknown wooden or stone structures as well as burial mounds.

Most of the monuments are invisible to the eye.

The four-year study covered an area of 12 square kilometres

British project leader Professor Vincent Gaffney, said:"This project has revealed that the area around Stonehenge is teeming with previously unseen archaeology and that the application of new technology can transform how archaeologists and the wider public understand one of the best-studied landscapes on Earth."

Dr Richard Bates, an applied geophysicist at St Andrews, was one of the project's international partners. He said: "It's incredibly exciting watching these fe emerge from the data as you survey and gradually build up the picture of the landscape in the field. This data is going to provide information for researchers to ponder of for years to come.

"For me what is also so important are the links that we can see between these sites in southern England and those that we are currently studying in northern Scotland around the World Heritage sites of Orkney. The people clearly had very similar ideas about the landscape."