East Morton

Sunset Stone, Silsden, West Yorkshire

24/04/202523/08/2025 megalithix

Cup-and-Ring Stone: OS Grid Reference – SE 06745 45368

Getting Here

Along the B6265 old road between Keighley and Bingley, at Riddlesden go up Granby Lane, bending left into Banks Lane. About a mile up you’ll reach the moorland road. Turn left at the junction and nearly half-a-mile along there’s a layby on y’ right. From here walk along the footpath on the edge of the ridge, half-mile along bending slightly above Rough Holden Farm until, a coupla hundred yards on, you hit the dirt-track. There’s a long straight stretch of walling on your left: follow this for a few hundred yards, go through the gate and here walk on the other (left) side of the wall (if you’ve reach a derelict farm, you’ve gone too far). Some 60 yards or so down here, keep your eyes peeled on the long earthfast stone right near the walling. An alternative is to start at the steep hairpin bend up Holden Lane and follow the footpath into the woods. Walk along here (parallel with the stream below) for about 600 yards until you hit the bridge crossing the stream. Don’t cross over: instead double-back up the field on your right, go diagonally across and through the gate into the next field, and walk up along the walling to your right. 160 yards up, go through the gate and walk about 30 yards along the side of the walling again. Tis there!

Archaeology & History

This is a fascinating carved stone on the western edge of Rombald’s Moor that I was fortunate to find in 2008. It’s found in association with two other cup-marked stones, north and south of it. I first noticed it when I was walking along the footpath by the side of the wall and saw that on a small exposed part of the rock a single cup-marking carved close to the vertical edge of the stone—and I’m glad that I stopped to give it more attention. The stone was very deeply embedded and the covering soil so tightly packed that I could only shift a small part of it—but the section that I managed to uncover and, importantly, the time of day when I did this, brought about an intriguing visage with subtle mythic overtones.

The carving was found near the end of the day just as the sun was setting and touching the far horizon. I noticed there was a cup-and-half-ring to the side of where I’d sat for a rest, near the northern edge of the stone, and the clear but soft light of the evening caught this element and almost brought it to life! As I gazed down at the half-ring, the sun highlighted it even more and I saw that some extended carved lines continued and dropped over the near vertical edge of the stone, becoming an unbroken elongated ‘ring’ that stretched twice the length of the half-ring on the flat surface. Not only that, but a faint cup-mark seemed to be inside this extended vertical ring and, as I saw this, a dreaming epiphany hit me that the symbolism behind this was a representation of the setting sun that I was watching at that very moment. It was quite beautiful and the carving seemed to come to life. The thought, nay feeling, that this part of the carving symbolized a setting sun not only slotted easily into a common animistic ingredient, but hit me as common sense too! However, as my ego and rational sense rose back to the fore (I had to get mi shit together and walk a few miles home before night fell), I saw that this impression may be a completely spurious one; but, as the rock-face inclines west, towards the setting sun, the name of Sunset Stone stuck. As I carefully fondled beneath the heavy overgrowth of vegetation covering the stone, I realised that I needed to come here again and uncover more of it, as additional cups and lines seemed to be reaching out from the mass of soil.

I returned to the stone a few times, but it was several years that I revisited the site with the intention of uncovering more of the design in the company of Richard Hirst and Paul Hornby on August 4, 2013—and it took considerable effort to roll back the turf that covered the stone. But it was worth it! For it soon became obvious that much of the stone that was covered over had been unexposed for many centuries: as Richard pointed out, the edge of the rock was very smoothed by weathering, whilst the covered section of the stone that we were revealing was still quite rough and misshapen all across the surface, lacking weather and water erosion. Much of this design therefore, highlighted itself to us as it was when the mason first carved the stone. And it turned out to be a pretty curious design!

Faded photo of the Sunset Stone — Faded photo of the carving

Our first impression was that the design comprised of two cup-and-rings near the middle of the rock, with another cup-and-drooping-ring near the northern edge of the stone, and between ten and twelve typical cup-markings, many on the western exposed side. But curiously near the middle were also a couple of rings whose edges had been defined, but the hollowed-out ‘cup’ in the middle remained uncut or unfinished, being a proto-ring, so to speak. Also, lines leading from these unfinished ‘cups’ were also pecked and laid out, but they were also unfinished. Some sections of the unfinished lines ran onto the western edge of the stone and were very faint, but they were undeniably there. Unfinished cups is an unusual feature for carvings on Rombald’s Moor.

But the most interesting element in the fainter, seemingly unfinished carved lines, was what may be a small spiral that started above the two faint cup-and-rings. This then continued in a sharp arc which doubled-back on itself. In the other direction, the lines curve round and go down to the vertical face of the rock, before bending back up onto the level surface again, then disappearing. The topmost cup-and-half-ring is also a curious feature. When you visit here you’ll see how this aspect of the design looks for all the world like a simply cup-and-half-ring near the edge of the stone. But, as I’ve already mentioned, closer examination shows that this “half-ring” has a larger oval body beneath it on the vertical face of the stone, very worn due to its exposure to the elements and very much in the shape of a bell—and within this large cup-and-ring ‘bell’ is a much fainter complete cup-and-ring, just below the topmost cup-marking. I know that I’ve already mentioned this, but I’m giving it added emphasis as it’s a unique design element for carvings on these moors.

The Sunset Stone really requires more attention, when the daylight conditions are just right, so that all of these intriguing aspects can be highlighted with greater lucidity. There is also the potential that more carved ingredients remains hidden beneath the compacted soil.

What seems to be a more trivial single cup-marked stone can be seen roughly 20 yards to the north.

Acknowledgements: Massive thanks to Richard Hirst of Hebden Bridge, and Prof. Paul Hornby, for their help in bringing this carving to light.

Brass Castle (1), West Morton, West Yorkshire

22/01/202406/11/2025 megalithix

Cup-and-Ring Stone: OS Grid Reference – SE 08119 44111

Also Known as:

Carving no. 40 (Hedges)
Carving no. 81 (Boughey & Vickerman)

Getting Here

From East Morton, head up the winding Street Lane for just over a mile until, on your right-hand side, you hit the long straight Roman Road, or Ilkley Road as it’s known. Literally 690 yards (0.63km) up, on your left a footpath is signposted. Take the path alongside the wall, through the first gate (note the pile of stones at this gate, which are the remains of the destroyed Bradup stone circle) then keeping on for ⅓-mile till you reach another gate, then 200 yards to the next one where you reach the moorland proper. From here you need to walk through the heather, just over 300 yards southwest where you’ll reach this large rock. Y’ can’t miss it!

Archaeology & History

Considering the size of this stone, visitors might expect there to be more on it than there actually is; although a large section of it has been quarried off and there might have been more to it in earlier times. A basic cup-and-ring with one or two single cup-marks elsewhere on its surface, the carving was first described by Stuart Feather (1964) following one of his many rambles hereby, when he was checking out the Rivock carvings a short distance to the west (calling it the Rivock 18 stone). He wrote:

S. Feather’s 1964 sketch

“On the eastern edge of the Rivock plateau, about half-a-mile west of the stone circle at Bradup Bridge, is a cup-and-ring marked rock of a pronounced triangular shape. This at present measures 10ft by 8ft and is 3ft high at its western side… At some time in the past it has been quarried, probably to build part of the adjacent gritstone walls. The 8ft side of the rock has quite distinct drill marks visible…

Close-up of the CnR

The rock has…on its sloping surface a very fine cup-and-ring mark, the ring 6in in diameter around a cup 2in deep, all finely executed and well preserved. Running south from this cup-and-ring mark is a level area 3ft long and 5in wide, which ends alongside the ring at one end and at the quarried edge of the rock at the other. This is probably the former position of a fossil which has weathered out and its alignment onto the cup-and-ring may be due to the carving having been deliberately sited in juxtaposition to this very distinct natural feature. Only one other 2in deep cup remains on the surviving original portion of the rock; others may have been quarried away.”

References:

Boughey, Keith & Vickerman, E.A., Prehistoric Rock Art of the West Riding, WYAS: Wakefield 2003.
Feather, Stuart, “Mid-Wharfedale Cup-and-Ring Markings – no.18, Rivock”, in Bradford Cartwright Hall Archaeology Bulletin, 9:2, 1964.
Hedges, John (ed.), The Carved Rocks on Rombalds Moor, WYMCC: Wakefield 1986.

Redman’s Spa, Bingley Moor, West Yorkshire

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Healing Well: OS Grid Reference – SE 1159 4343

Also Known as:

Redmire Spa
Redmond’s Spa
Richmond’s Spa

Getting Here

From East Morton village, take the moorland road, east, and up the steep hill. Where the road just about levels out there’s a right turn, plus (more importantly!) a trackway on your left which leads onto the moor. Walk up this track for ⅔-mile until you get to the point where the moorland footpath splits, with one bending downhill to an old building, whilst the other smaller footpath continues on the flat to the north. Go up here for 400 yards then walk off-path, right, for about about 150 yards. But beware – it’s boggy as fuck!

Archaeology & History

On this featureless southern-side of Rombalds Moor, all but lost and hidden in the scraggle of rashies, a very boggy spring emerges somewhere hereabouts. I say hereabouts, as the ground beneath you (if you can call it that!) is but a shallow swamp and its actual source is almost impossible to locate. If you want to find the exact spot yourself, be prepared to put up with that familiar stench of bog-water that assaults our senses when we walk through this sort of terrain. Few are those who do, I have found… But somewhere here, amidst this bog—and still shown on the OS-maps—is the opening of what is alternatively called Redman’s or Richmond’s Spa. We don’t know exactly when it acquired its status as a spa-well, but the 18^th century Halifax doctor, Thomas Garnett—who wrote the early work on the Horley Green Spa—appears to be the first person to describe it. Garnett (1790) said how the place:

“was first mentioned to me by Mr W. Maud, surgeon, in Bradford, who went with me to see it. It is situated on Romalds-moor, about two or three miles from Bingley, and goes by the name of Redmire-spaw. The access to it is by no means good; the ground about it being very spongy and soft. On the bottom and sides of the channel is deposited an ochrey matter, of a very fine, bright, yellow colour; and which I believe is used, by the country people in the neighbourhood, to paint their houses. It sparkles when poured into a glass and has a taste very like the Tewit-well at High-Harrogate; which water it very much resembles in all its properties, and seems to be about the same strength… This water seems to hold a quantity of iron dissolved by means of fixed air. Its taste is very pleasant; it is said to act very powerfully as a diuretic, when drank in considerable quantity, and may prove a useful remedy, in cases where good effects may be expected from chalybeates in very small doses; the fixed air, and even the pure water itself may be useful in some cases. It is, however, necessary to drink it at the well, for it seems to lose its iron and fixed air very soon.”

I’ve drank this water, and believe me!—it doesn’t quite taste as pleasant as Mr Garnett espouses! Its alright I s’ppose—but drinking water from a bog isn’t necessarily a good idea. That aside, I find it intriguing to hear so much lore about such a little-known spring; and it is obvious that the reputation Garnett describes about this spa came almost entirely from the local people, who would have been visiting this site for countless centuries and who would know well its repute. Below the source of the well the land is known as Spa Flat, and slightly further away Spa Foot, where annual gatherings were once held at certain times of the year to celebrate the flowing of the waters. Such social annual gatherings suggests that the waters here were known about before it acquired its status as a spa—which would make sense. The remoteness of this water source to attract wealthy visitors (a prime function of Spa Wells) wouldn’t succeed and even when Garnett visited the place, he said how he had to travel a long distance to get here.

The origin of its name was pondered by the great Harry Speight (1898) who wondered if it derived from the ancient and knightly Redman family of Harewood, whose lands reached over here. But he was unsure and it was merely a thought. As an iron-bearing spring (a chalybeate) you’d think it might derive from being simply a red mire or bog (much like the Red Mire Well at Hebden Bridge), but its variant titles of apparent surnames casts doubt on this simple solution.

No one visits the place anymore. Of the countless times I’ve wandered the moors, rare have been the times when I’ve seen folk anywhere near this old spring. It is still coloured with the same virtues that Garnett described in the 18^th century: the yellowish deposits, the boggy ground, much of which reaches to the truly dodgy Yellow Bog a short distance north and which should be completed avoided by ramblers after heavy rains (try it if y’ don’t believe me—but you’ve been warned!).

References:

Garnett, Thomas, Experiments and Observations on the Horley-Green Spaw, near Halifax, George Nicholson: Bradford 1790.
Short, Thomas, The Natural, Experimental and Medicinal History of the Mineral Waters of Derbyshire, Lincolnshire and Yorkshire, privately printed: London 1724.
Speight, Harry, Chronicles and Stories of Old Bingley, Elliott Stock: London 1898.

Two Eggs, Morton Moor, West Yorkshire

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Legendary Rocks: OS Grid Reference – SE 1058 4490

Getting Here

By whichever route you wanna take, get y’self to the prominent cup-and-ring marked rocks known as the Thimble Stones near the very top of these moors. From here, walk roughly 400 yards southwest onto the bare open moors (there are no footpaths here) and you’ll see these two isolated prominent boulders living quietly on their own. You can’t really miss ’em! You’re there.

Archaeology & History

Of the two giant boulders here, both are included in the petroglyph surveys of Hedges (1986) and Boughey & Vickerman’s (2003) as possessing “all natural” cup-marks on their top and vertical surfaces. Those on top of the rocks certainly seem to be Nature’s handiwork, whilst many of the seeming ‘cups’ on the vertical face of one (not the one pictured here) are due to gunshots. I’m not quite sure when they were done, but they certainly didn’t exist during the many visits I made here in the in the 1970s and ’80s.

They stones included in most of the standard antiquarian surveys of the 19th century, with the earliest being Forrest & Grainge (1869) who described them as,

“two detached masses of rock, standing alone upon the moor. The first is 14ft in length by 8ft in height, tapering to the ground; a set of cups and channels occupy the highest point. The other, distant 13 yards, is of an irregular square form, 45 yards in circumference and 7ft high. This stone appears to be tilted on its edge, presenting its cleavage upwards, and has hollows containing water, but is so much wasted above that if it has ever borne the cups and channels, they are now obliterated.”

Collyer & Turner (1885) described “a number of cups” on the edge of the northern rock; and Romilly Allen (1896) likewise. Even that historical literary giant, Harry Speight (1900), added his own tuppence here, telling folks how both Eggs “are channelled and bear cups.”

It’s very possible that these isolated stones did have some sort of significance to our prehistoric ancestors. There are innumerable examples worldwide of rocks like this possessing ritual and mythic lore—and many in the British Isles too. And the cupmarks on the stones may have been enhanced by those same prehistoric ancestors. But we’ll never know for sure…

Folklore

The creation myth behind the Two Eggs is one echoed in traditions across the world. Folklore tells that the Eggs were said to have been laid here by a great dragon who lived within a hill some distance to the south. All other aspects of the tale have sadly long since been forgotten…

References:

Allen, J. Romilly, “Cup and Ring Sculptures on Ilkley Moor,” in The Reliquary, volume 2, 1896.
Bennett, Paul, The Old Stones of Elmet, Capall Bann: Milverton 2001.
Boughey, Keith & Vickerman, E.A., Prehistoric Rock Art of the West Riding, WYAS: Wakefield 2003.
Collyer, Robert & Turner, J.H., Ilkley: Ancient and Modern, William Walker: Otley 1885.
Forrest, Charles & Grainge, William, A Ramble on Rombald’s Moor, Northern Antiquarian: Bradford 2012 (1st published 1867-69).
Hedges, John (ed.), The Carved Rocks on Rombalds Moor, WYMCC: Wakefield 1986.
Speight, Harry, Upper Wharfedale, Elliott Stock: London 1900.

Bury Lane (east), East Morton, West Yorkshire

01/12/201721/10/2019 megalithix

Cup-Marked Stone: OS Grid Reference – SE 09373 42410

Also Known as:

Carving 51 (Hedges)
Carving 91 (Boughey & Vickerman)

Getting Here

Cup-marked stone, East Morton (photo thanks, Sue Patchett)

From the expanding village of East Morton, by the school at the west-end of the village, walk up the narrow Street Lane for nearly 600 yards, past the houses, until you reach a footpath on your left that takes you across the fields. Walk along here (following the line of walling) for 250 yards, then, take a sharp left and down the field for 55 yards (50m) until, right beneath the power lines, you’ll find the rock in question.

Archaeology & History

This is one in a small, little-known cluster of petroglyphs on the western outskirts of East Morton. It is located at the base of what are thought to be remnants of Iron Age walling. Carved onto an elongated earthfast stone are a number of very well-preserved cup-marks, with what seems to be a faint carved pecked line running out from one of the southernmost cup-marks and curving back on itself (we could do with a good sketch artist getting us a good drawing of this). You can see this faint line on the far-left side of the stone in Sue’s photo above.

The petroglyph was rediscovered by the northern antiquarian Stuart Feather (1959) in one of his many sojourns exploring the prehistoric remains of the area. In John Hedges’ (1986) survey, the carving was described simply as:

“Triangular smooth grit rock with fairly flat top on which are twenty cups, not all clear, some large and oval, a few grooves.”

Boughey & Vickerman’s survey (2003) made no note of any additional features on the petroglyph.

References:

Boughey, Keith & Vickerman, E.A., Prehistoric Rock Art of the West Riding, WYAS: Wakefield 2003.
Feather, Stuart, “Bronze Age Rock Carvings,” in Keighley News, March 7, 1959.
Hedges, John (ed.), The Carved Rocks on Rombalds Moor, WYMCC: Wakefield 1986.
Jackson, Sidney, “Massive Walling at East Morton,” in Cartwright Hall Archaeology Group Bulletin, 5:9, 1960.
Jackson, Sidney, “East Morton Ancient Walls,” in Cartwright Hall Archaeology Group Bulletin, 6:9, 1961.

Acknowledgements: Huge thanks to Sue Patchett for use of her photo.

Stanbury Hill North, Bingley Moor, West Yorkshire

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Cup-Marked Stone: OS Grid Reference – SE 1097 4339

Getting Here

Take the directions as if you’re visiting the ornate petroglyphs known as the Lunar Stone and the Spotted Stone. Walk past them and down the slope, NW, as if you’re heading to the small valley a few hundred yards away. As you reach the bottom of the slope, closer to the stream, a large boulder catches your attention. This carved stone is just a few yards before you reach it.

Archaeology & History

This simple cup-marked design below the northern slope of Stanbury Hill has, on its northeastern sloping face, a single cup-mark; then, past a curiously-etched line (probably more recent) is a larger circular feature, like a very shallow ‘bowl’ as in the one found in the superb Stag Cottage petroglyph complex 300 miles north (and several other carvings). A few yards away, a large single cup-mark has been etched onto another stone. As with quite a few carvings in this region, they have been missed in the standard archaeocentric surveys.

Rivock End, Riddlesden, West Yorkshire

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Cup-Marked Stone: OS Grid Reference – SE 07782 43878

Getting Here

Stars Stone028 — Clusters of cup-markings

From the B6265 valley road between Bingley and Keighley, just near Riddlesden Hall, take the road up and over the canal into Riddlesden, bearing left up past West Riddlesden Hall and up Banks Lane. As you reach the T-junction at the top, where you hit the Silsden Road that goes round the moors, park up. Turn left and walk along the Silsden Road, counting the field on your left, moorland-side. At the fourth, go through the gate uphill, keeping to the walls on the right and going through the second gate up. Walk straight on for nearly 130 yards (119m) where you’ll see this group of three earthfast rocks right next to each other.

Archaeology & History

Not included in any pervious archaeological survey, this is a fine cup-marked stone with at least 25 cups etched into this average-sized rock, halfway up this field of stones. When this carving was rediscovered on Friday, 6 January, 2012, it was noticed that a couple of cup-marks were peeking out from the edge of the grasses covering the rock — and so a careful and gradual uncovering of the rock itself was slowly exposed and see if the initial suspicions of an authentic carving were correct. Thankfully it turned out right!

When first spotting this, I undercovered more beneath the soil, although it’s not clear how much of this stone is covered in carvings, as the Earth has grown considerably over the top of it. There is also what seems to be a geological curiosity on the eastern section of the stone; whereby some apparent ‘cups’ seem to have been created by natural process. However, these have been added to by human hands at a distant time, long ago. The cup-marks themselves vary in size, from small ones barely an inch across, to larger ones measuring some 3-inches in diameter; and oddly, the cups seem to get larger the further west you travel across the stone! More research is needed at this site to ascertain the a more complete image of the petroglyph.

…to be continued…

Dave’s Stone, Rivock, Riddlesden, West Yorkshire

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Cup-Marked Stone: OS Grid Reference – SE 07634 44209

Getting Here

From the B6265 valley road between Bingley and Keighley, just near Riddlesden Hall, take the road up and over the canal into Riddlesden, bearing left up past West Riddlesden Hall and up Banks Lane. As you reach the T-junction at the top, where you hit the Silsden Road that goes round the moors, park up. Takes the footpath across the road and walk straight uphill, all the way to the top just above where the tree line ends and you’re on the moorland flat. Bear right, over one wall, then walk 20-30 yards further and the stone in the photo here should be roughly under thine nostrils!

Archaeology & History

There’s no previous record of this as a cup-marked stone, so it needs adding here. I’ve gotta admit that I’m not 100% sure about it as a real prehistoric carving — but considering the dubious nature of the nearby Carving no.58 and the Rivock Nose Stone, this is roughly somewhere in-between in terms of its legitimacy as an ancient carved stone. Certainly I’ve come across other cup-markings, adjudged by newly-qualified ‘professionals’ as fine, but which I find highly questionable — so this one that Dave Hazell came across a couple of years ago should certainly be added to their professional rock art catalogues.

Daves Stone037 — Close-up of the cupmarks

It’s simple enough: a four-feet long stone, whose top east-facing edge has been worked in more recent centuries by the miners who dug on the slopes below (perhaps to turn it into a gatepost?). There are three notable ‘cups’ that are clearly visible on the photos here. The topmost cup is something pretty recent, having had industrial attention given it; the largest cup may be natural; but the one in the middle seems to be what our English Heritage rock-art enthusiasts term a legitimate prehistoric petroglyph. It certainly seems a good one! Have a look for yourself and see what you reckon! It’s in a good spot and is certainly worth the wander, if only to have a look at other cup-and-rings in the region.

Stanbury Hill (097), Bingley Moor, West Yorkshire

19/05/201030/10/2019 megalithix

Cup-and-Ring Stone: OS Grid Reference – SE 10970 43361

Also Known as:

Carving no.78 (Hedges)

Getting Here

To get here, follow the same directions to reach the ornate Lunar Stone. Once here, walk about 20 yards west towards where the brow of the hill begins to slope down. Amble about and you’ll easily find it.

Archaeology & History

This is a fascinating carving. Fascinating, inasmuch as it seemingly keeps changing appearance when Nature moves her daylight hues and whimsical unpredictability betwixt the hills, surrounding landscape and human observer. Depending very much where you stand and when you look at this small rock — dappled with unacknowledged veils of sunlights, grey winds and other natural forces — determines what the stone shows you. This carving as much as any upon this hill shows once again the hugely neglected dynamic between human purveyor and Nature’s powerful subtlety: an organic exchange of moods from stone to man and back again; very much how our ancestors saw things to be…

CR97a — Pecked lines clearly visible on the far end of the rock

For if we were to merely pay attention to what the reference books tell us about this carving (good reference books though they are!), we’d simply be seeing a rock possessing a “cup and partial ring and two other possible cups”, as Boughey & Vickerman (2003) and other students might do. But then, if conditions change, only subtly, and we gaze instead of study, other things can emerge. And just such a thing happened when we came here yesterday…

On my first visit here I could only see a single cup-marking, with another ‘debatable’ close by. The light of day wasn’t quite right it seemed. But when we visited here yesterday, the sun, the light, the land and our ambling minds saw much more unveiled from this old grey surface. Whilst two cups-and-rings seem to link with another cup on the lower end of the stone, amidst the natural cracks and fissures, on the higher end are very distinct carved pecked lines, one of which has been blatantly cut onto, or upon, the long curving crack which runs from one end of the stone to the other. As this carved line emerges out of the natural crack, it heads upwards. As it does so, another line has been pecked running off it to the left and then curves back down the sloping rock-face once again. But in this previously unrecognised carved section, these lines may extend even further up the rock…..it’s hard to say for sure. We could do with greater analysis of its surface, with further observations under yet more lighting conditions.

References:

Boughey, Keith & Vickerman, E.A., Prehistoric Rock Art of the West Riding, WYAS 2003.
Hedges, John (ed.), The Carved Rocks on Rombalds Moor, WYMCC: Wakefield 1986.

Eclipse Stone (107), Bingley Moor, West Yorkshire

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Cup-and-Ring Stone: OS Grid Reference – SE 11164 42652

Also Known as:

Carving no.107 (Boughey & Vickerman)
Carving no.228 (Hedges)

Getting Here

From East Morton village, take the moorland road, east, and up the steep hill. Where the road levels out there’s a right turn, plus (more importantly!) a trackway on your left which leads onto the moor. Go up this track for a few hundred yards until you’re on the moor proper (by this I mean the track’s levelled out and you’re looking 360° all round you with all the moor in front of you). Just before the track starts a slight downhill slope, go into the heather on your right, for about 80 yards. You’re damn close!

Archaeology & History

I first came here many years back in my mid- to late-teens with an old school-friend Jon Tilleard, wandering about adventurously, occasionally stopping here and there when I found some stupid cup-mark or other seemingly innocuous scratch on the rocks, gerrin’ all excited and jumping about like a tit! But when we visited the place again a few days back my response was somewhat different. I was worse! But for good reason…

The potential variations visible in this carving are peculiar, to say the least. Ones first impression shows a carving similar in many ways to that shown in Hedges (1986) fine survey; but upon closer inspection a number of initial visual responses begin to look murky. A seeming cup-with-double-ring aint what it seems! To me at least (sad fella that I am!), it’s far more intriguing and far less certain, with a number of oddities still left.

The central feature of the carving is the lovely near-cup-and-double-ring! As we can see in the photo here, there are some insecurities in the top-right of the outer ring. To the upper right of this is another cup-with-partial-ring that was not included in the Hedges (1986) survey, nor Boughey & Vickerman’s (2003) updated work. There are some obvious pecked carved lines — whose specific definition yet remains unclear — in and around this area of the petroglyph; but in the “official” illustration these elements or ingredients were somehow missed.

When we visited the stone the other day, the naturally eroded lines on the rock seemed pretty obvious; but the more we looked, the less secure we were about some of them. Thankfully the light kept changing about, allowing us to get different perspectives — and with the low sunlight of evening casting itself across the rock, some additional features seemed obvious. In particular, what seemed like two natural “scratches” on the stone turned out to have been pecked and carved and the straight lines ran into the double cup-and-ring on the left-side. One of these — the lower and shorter of the two — seems to run into the central cup, but this aint certain. The longer top line has an even more circuitous venture: entering the outer ring, it passes onto the top-inner ring and then bends along its edge, before exiting again on the right-hand side, through the outer ring and heading out towards the large natural eroded cutting a few feet away (see my crappy drawing to get an idea). Other faint aspects on this stone may have the hand of man behind them…

There are certainly a few other cups on the stone: one with a near semi-circle on its lower and right-hand side. The long nature-worn cut, right-of-middle, may have had the hand of man cutting into the cup at the bottom; and another couple of “is it? — isn’t it?” enhanced natural cups seem possible on the left side of the rock. There is also what looks like a distinct single cup-marking on the west-facing vertical face of the stone (you walk towards it from the track). It looks pretty decent, but I’ll let them there “professionals” assess the validity or otherwise of that one! But the other unmistakable and very curious ingredient is the deep, worn arc beneath the primary double-ring feature. This is, as the photo shows, separated by a long natural crack running halfway down and along the stone, above which possibly the double-ring feature touches. This large ‘arc’ feature gives the distinct impression of being a big smile! However…

Turn the image of the central feature upside down and you get a very different effect indeed. A rainbow above the surface of the Earth, with (perhaps) a pool in which the sun has reflected? Or an underworld venture? Looking at it from a few angles gives the impression of a comet moving across the sky, aswell as an eclipse with the diamond-ring effect. But as with cup-and-ring in general, there are plenty of other potentials! Which also begs the question: was it to be looked from the top or bottom (or left or right for that matter)?

I could waffle about this particular carving for much longer, showing that it had quite an effect on me. Check it out and sit with it for a while… It’s superb!

References:

Boughey, Keith & Vickerman, E.A., Prehistoric Rock Art of the West Riding, WYAS 2003.
Hedges, John (ed.), The Carved Rocks on Rombalds Moor, WYMCC: Wakefield 1986.