London  -  British police are looking for suspected souvenir-hunters who used a hammer and a screwdriver to vandalize the world-famous stone circle of Stonehenge, south-west Britain.

The incident, which occurred in the late evening of May 15, was the first atc of vandalism at the site, near Salisbury, in decades, police said Thursday.

Two men, spotted by security guards as the escaped from the scene by car, managed to hack off a coin-size piece from the central megalith, known as the Heel Stone.

Visitors to the 5,000-year-old site, lying on a hilly green field dotted with grazing sheep, are separated from the stone circle by a rope barrier.

Stonehenge, listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is a place of pilgrimage for neo-druids and those following pagan or neo-pagan beliefs.

It attracts thousands of visitors for the summer solstice on June 21, every year. (dpa)