A team of 12 archaeologists from across the UK has determined exactly where the rocks that form Stonehenge were carved some 5,000 years ago

Five thousand years after people in the British Isles began building Stonehenge, scientists now know precisely where some of the massive rocks came from and how they were unearthed.

A team of 12 geologists and archaeologists from across the UK unveiled research this month that traces some of the prehistoric monument’s smaller stones to two quarries in western Wales.

Scientists have long known the stones came from the Preseli Hills, but the new research helps disprove claims about the original rock locations made in 1923 by famous British geologist HH Thomas. (AAP)

The team also found evidence of prehistoric tools, stone wedges and digging activity in those quarries, tracing them to around 3000 BC, the era when Stonehenge’s first stage was constructed.

It’s rock-solid evidence that humans were involved in moving these “bluestones” to where they sit today, a full 241KM away, the researchers say.

“It finally puts to rest long-standing arguments over whether the bluestones were moved by human agency or by glacial action,” University of Southampton Archaeology Professor Joshua Pollard said in an email.

Pollard, a lead researcher in the study, said since 2010 the team has been busy analyzing samples from Stonehenge and trying to match them to rocks in the Preseli Hills of Wales.

“That is hard work,” he said. “Research of this kind takes time.”