Foamhenge

Near Natural Bridge, Virginia, there once stood a full-size replica of Stonehenge built entirely from styrofoam. Artist and roadside eccentric Mark Cline conceived the idea in nineteen ninety-eight after spotting sixteen-foot foam blocks at a local insulation factory. He negotiated a deal with Natural Bridge for free land in exchange for drawing tourists, then assembled the entire structure in about six weeks.

Foamhenge opened on April first, two thousand four. The foam stones matched Stonehenge's proportions and were even oriented to the same astronomical coordinates. Each block weighed roughly four hundred and twenty pounds, making them manageable by a small crew.

When Natural Bridge became a state park in twenty sixteen, Cline had to move his creation. The foam stones were packed up and relocated to a farm in Centreville, Virginia. The original hillside near Rockbridge County sat empty after that, but Foamhenge lives on, a beloved piece of Virginia roadside Americana.