This old stone edifice is easy to find. As you’re going along the old A628 Pontefract Road through High Ackworth, just where the road junction takes you on the B6421 (Purston Lane), park up where the track takes you up to the church on the right. And there, just set back off the north-side of the road by the steps and curious old shelter, with the greenery and houses to the rear, you’ll see what you’re looking for.
Archaeology & History
Although this old village cross is set up on a three-tiered rise of steps, these steps are not as old as the cross remnant that surmounts it, as they were constructed in the 20th century. The final ‘step’ however—a part of the old cross-base—is much older. It’s precise age is unknown, but tradition relates it as being 16-17th Century.
Tradition relates the creation of the village cross to a great illness that befell the local villagers, whose tale was cited at some length by one of Ackworth’s early historians. It formerly stood beneath the boughs of a great elm tree, whose offspring are hopefully still around. Henry Thompson (1879) wrote:
The cross on the Green, 1870Cross shown on 1852 map
“The Cross under the shadow of this kingly tree has a curious history in its keeping. From its steps, in the pre-Reformation times, the monks from the neighbouring priory at Nostel were wont on Fridays and Sundays to preach to the people. One of these, a man of noble soul and kindly heart, won the affections of the people in a wondrous manner. Children clung to his skirts in delight and love—the strong man admired and revered him, the old and weak reposed upon him as a pillar of strength and a tower of refuge. But business or piety called him to Rome. The villagers gave him their tears and he gave them his blessing. Under the shadow of the Vatican he was smitten by the Plague and died. Such was the love which his brethren of the Priory bore him, that they could not rest without having him sepultured in their midst. In its transit, the body passed through Ackworth; and nothing would satisfy the ignorant but faithful love of his old hearers but once more to see, even in death, the face of one who had loved them so well. The leaden coffin was opened, the village was stricken with the Plague and three or four hundred fell victims to the dread visitant.”
And it was here, wrote Saywell (1894) that,
“the Cross is said to have been erected on the exact spot where the body rested, to commemorate at once that event, and also the dire consequences which were permitted by God to flow from it. The date of its mutilation, the removal of the Cross, and the substitution of a ball (the emblem of the world), is generally ascribed to the time of the Great Rebellion.” (in 1642)
In addition to this, a Plague Stone was erected on the northern outskirt of the village, known as “the great stone on Castle Syke Hill”. Due to the condition of all the villagers, they became taboo to all who lived beyond Ackworth and so the old stone, said Thompson, became
“the only point of contact between them and the outer world. Upon that stone the Ackworth purchaser dropped his money into a vessel of water, for which, a few hours afterwards, he found his return in merchandise.”
The old Plague Stone can still be seen, a half-mile north of the village on the west-side of the Pontefract Road, just before Sandy Gate Lane….
References:
Saywell, J.L., The Parochial History of Ackworth, James Atkinson: Pontefract 1894.
Thompson, Henry, History of Ackworth School, Centenary Committee: Ackworth 1879.
Acknowledgements: Huge thanks for use of the Ordnance Survey map in this site profile, reproduced with the kind permission of the National Library of Scotland.
Go up Wells Road out of Ilkley central, up and across the cattle-grid and, one-third of a mile (0.5km) past the grid, keep your eyes peeled for the small road on your left. Go up here for literally half-a-mile and park at the roadside. From here you’ll see the straight track leading to the Silver Well cottage in the trees. Walk 250 yards along the track (past the larger Weary Hill [3] carving on the slope just above) towards the cottage and, about fufty 100 yards before reaching the gate, walk up the slope through the heather to the small flat-faced rock that looks down at you. If you’re approaching the much larger, more notable boulder of the Silver Well (3) carving, you need to be about 20 yards east of it.
Archaeology & History
Line of distinct cup-marks
This is a simple but notable cup-marked rock. As you walk up the slope towards it, you get the impression you’re looking at the front-end of a tomb entrance of some sort—but it’s nothing of the sort (sadly). Once you reach the flat face of stone, you’ll see that its topmost section is a thin wedge of stone along which are three distinct and quite deep cup-markings. The stone was first mentioned in Hedges (1986) survey, where he also thought there may have been a fourth cup on the south-side of the stone. When I first saw photos of this, I thought it was either a modern one or just another of Nature’s carved handiwork; but when we visited it recently our opinions changed.
There’s a rock a short distance east of here with a single cup-mark on it—but it’s not really worth looking at and might not even be the real deal.
References:
Boughey, K.J.S. & Vickerman, E.A., Prehistoric Rock Art of the West Riding, WYAS: Leeds 2003.
Hedges, John (ed.), The Carved Rocks of Rombald’s Moor, WYMCC: Wakefield 1986.
Acknowledgements: Big thanks for help and assistance on our day’s venture to Graeme Chappell and Tom Cleland.
Holy Well (destroyed): OS Grid Reference – NY 405 551
Archaeology & History
On the far south-side of Botchergate running out of central Carlisle, could once be seen the Hospital of St. Nicholas that was mainly used for the treatment of lepers, and in a field very close by could once be found a healing well apparently dedicated to the saint, but which was destroyed following the construction of the railway through the town. It was described by a Mrs Cartmell to the historian Henry Barnes (1906) who told him that it “had a great reputation, its water being considered a valuable remedy for sore legs, or sores on any part of the body”—hence being of value in the treatment of leprosy.
The site was described briefly in McIntire’s (1944) holy wells survey, where he added that in the 19th Century, “it was still visited in May by people who filled their ‘shaking bottles’ with the water.” Beltane rites are common at holy wells. The feast day of St. Nicholas is December 6.
References:
Armstrong, A.M., Mawer, A., Stenton, F.M. & Dickins, B., The Place-Names of Cumberland – volume 1, Cambridge Univerity Press 1950.
Barnes, Henry, “On a Stone Coffin and Chalice found at St. Nicholas’, Carlisle,” in Transactions Cumberland & Westmorland Antiquarian & Archaeological Society, volume 6 (Series 2), 1906.
McIntire, Walter T., “The Holy Wells of Cumberland,” in Transactions Cumberland & Westmorland Antiquarian & Archaeological Society, volume 44 (New Series), 1944.
Nice ‘n easy to find this one. Take the Wells Road up out of Ilkley central, up and over the cattle-grid and, one-third of a mile (0.5km) past the grid, keep your eyes peeled fro the small road on your left. Go up here for literally half-a-mile and park at the roadside. From here you’ll see the straight track leading to the Silver Well cottage in the trees. Walk 300 yards along the track (past the larger Weary Hill [3] carving on the slope just above) towards the cottage and, about ten yards before reaching the gate, walk uphill through the heather to the notable large boulder forty yards up the slope. Y’ can’t really miss it.
Archaeology & History
Cupmarks faintly visible
On a recent visit to this cup-marked stone, good old Mother E greeted us with a dark grey sky and so the design we were hoping to catch on this large sloping stone wasn’t quite what we hoped. The wide and half-inch deep cup-marks were visible when we stooped low to look across the surface of the stone, but from above they were difficult to make out. Altogether we counted eight cups—but Boughey & Vickerman (2003) reckoned there were nine of them. Also, well-defined grooves, half-natural and half-man-made, were just above visible, but we couldn’t see them in their entirety. In John Hedges (1986) sketch of the design, the cups and wide deep grooves are clear to see.
Hedges’ 1986 sketchSome cups faintly visible
In the event that you have a look at this petroglyph, it would be best to visit it on a clear day when the sun is low—and if you brush the surface with water it would highlight the design pretty clearly. It’s also possible that you’d see new elements on the carving as a result of your work.
One final note: when we came here recently, both Graeme Chappell and Tom Cleland related to me that the rock itself was quite a notable red colour—which was totally lost on me as I’m the colorblind dude in the bunch! But, as they both suggested, this distinct colouration was probably one of the ingredients the stone was chosen to be carved. Makes sense.
References:
Allen, J. Romilly, “Notice of Sculptured Rocks near Ilkley,” in Journal of the British Archaeological Association, volume 38, 1882.
Anonymous, Walks Around Cup and Ring Stones, ITIC: Bradford n.d. (1995)
Boughey, K.J.S. & Vickerman, E.A., Prehistoric Rock Art of the West Riding, WYAS: Leeds 2003.
Hedges, John (ed.), The Carved Rocks of Rombald’s Moor, WYMCC: Wakefield 1986.
Acknowledgements: Huge thanks for use of the Ordnance Survey map in this site profile, reproduced with the kind permission of the National Library of Scotland.
There’s a possibility that some trace of this seemingly lost sacred well might still be found. It was first described in 1233 CE as the fountain of St. Ellen and the land hereby was given to monks who lived here. The stream which emerged from St. Helen’s fountain (fontis Sanctæ Elenæ), or well, was known as “the stream of the Holy Fountain of St. Elena”, and this was also mentioned in the same 13th Century charters, but sadly no traditions regarding the site were mentioned. The waters however, were likely venerated around St. Helen’s feast day, of August 18.
The Well was found to the east-side of old Botcherby village (now swallowed into the expanding Carlisle suburbia), heading towards Scotby, with the description in the Charter indicating its source was much closer to Botcherby, perhaps just over the old township boundary.
When Walt McIntire (1944) did his survey of the region’s holy wells, he was as unsure about its location as I am, merely telling:
“”St. Helena’s Spring,” mentioned in a charter of Walter of Botcherby to the monks of Wetheral c. 1235 as situate between Botcherby and Scotby.”
So where was it? —or is it? Are there any Carlisle historians out there who’ve found its hallowed spot…? (Note: the grid-ref I’ve given to this site is obviously an approximation)
References:
Armstrong, A.M., Mawer, A., Stenton, F.M. & Dickins, B., The Place-Names of Cumberland – volume 1, Cambridge Univerity Press 1950.
McIntire, Walter T., “The Holy Wells of Cumberland,” in Transactions Cumberland & Westmorland Antiquarian & Archaeological Society, volume 44 (New Series), 1944.
Prescott, J.E. (ed.), Registry of the Priory of Wetherhal, Elliot Stock: London 1897.
Acknowledgements: Huge thanks for use of the Ordnance Survey map in this site profile, reproduced with the kind permission of the National Library of Scotland.
Holy Well (destroyed): OS Grid Reference – NY 400 559
Archaeology & History
In Walt McIntire’s (1944) survey of Cumbrian holy wells, he mentioned this one, long since covered over, near the middle of the old city, saying:
“‘St. Cuthbert’s Well,’” recorded by Bede in his account of St. Cuthbert’s visit to Carlisle in 685. The site of this well is supposed to have been in the market-place, near the premises now occupied by Messrs. Thurnam & Son. It was formerly protected by a curious erection known as Carnaby’s folly, which subsequently was used as a fish market, until it was removed by the Corporation.”
The old well was mentioned in Jefferson’s (1838) early survey of the city, although he didn’t associate St. Cuthbert with the waters, merely telling,
“At the north end of the shambles was a draw-well, over which was a building supported by pillars, called Carnaby’s Folly. Adjoining to this, was the fish market. The shambles and the Folly were taken down in the latter end of the last century the latter having been purchased, at a great price, by the corporation.”
There is however, the St. Cuthbert’s Lane leading to the church dedicated to the same chap, previously known as St. Cuthbert’s Vennel and so-named as far back as 1378 CE. The proximity of the old Market Cross to St. Cuthbert’s Lane suggests the usual association between sacred wells, old stone crosses and the gathering of traders and village folk alike.
Folklore
St Cuthbert’s feast was March 20 – a festival tacked on to the Spring Equinox. He was a hermit and a saint of the early Northumbrian church in the Celtic tradition.
References:
Armstrong, A.M., Mawer, A., Stenton, F.M. & Dickins, B., The Place-Names of Cumberland – volume 1, Cambridge Univerity Press 1950.
Jefferson, Samuel, The History and Antiquities of Carlisle, S. Jefferson: Carlisle 1838.
McIntire, Walter T., “The Holy Wells of Cumberland,” in Transactions Cumberland & Westmorland Antiquarian & Archaeological Society, volume 44 (New Series), 1944.
Along the A81 road between the Port of Menteith and Aberfoyle, ¾-mile (1.2km) west of the Port of Menteith you’ll see a small single-track road on the right—by a group of cottages—that takes you uphill. Go uphill for just over a half-mile and park-up on the rough grass on your left, ensuring there’s enough room for a tractor to get past (if some halfwit Englishman comes out and says “you can’t park there!”, remind him that this is Scotland!*). Just where you’ve parked-up there’s a dirt-track on your left; walk up it, go through the gate, and nearly 300 yards after this there’s a gate into the fields on your left. Go through here, and follow the straight line of fencing for 700 yards, passing one of the Netherglenny cairns, till you hit a wall. Go through the gate and, 60-70 yards south-west on a raised ridge of land is a long line of bedrock stone. You’ve arrived!
Archaeology & History
Cups & rings & solar sign?
In the early 1990s, rock art explorer Kaledon Naddair gave a talk at Kilmartin on the prehistoric rock art of Scotland. Amongst other carvings, he reported on a number of new finds that he and others had made at the Ballochraggan complex near Aberfoyle and, as I recall, it included this fascinating and almost unique design (Naddair and his team did hundreds of detailed drawings of many carvings, most of which are very hard to find nowadays). Some years later, in 2009, rock art student George Currie came across the same stone shortly before forestry plantation grew to obscure it entirely. It was described for the first time in Brouwer & van Veen’s (2009) fine survey of the Ballochraggan petroglyphs. My first visit here was in 2021 in the company of Prof Paul Hornby, when the forest was still standing and we had to cut our way through the trees to see a section of stone. A few years on, now that the forest has been cut down, all of the carving has come to light again—and it’s a bittova beauty!
Down the stone NE-SWBowls & troughs of water
Described erroneously by the Scottish Rock Art Project as being at Netherglenny, this impressive design is just north of Ballochraggan house and is a faded but impressive carving, possessing a rare ‘motif’ or symbol not usually found on Scottish petroglyphs. The line of rock on which the carving’s found runs in a northeast-to-southwest line, perhaps relating to the rising and setting of the solstice sun. Perhaps… Most of the carving is a scatter of cup-and-rings covering more than half the length of the rock surface, mainly on its more western section. But also, notably, there’s a series of geological bowls and troughs along the rock, primarily from the middle of the stone to the easternmost end where, perhaps significantly, there are few carved elements apart from a couple of cup-marks close to two of the deep bowls. The bowls and troughs are mainly along the central and northern edge of the stone. On my visit here recently, near the end of a lengthy heatwave, these natural ‘bowls’ were still filled with a lot of water! I was grateful—and used the water to highlight some parts of the carving.
First group of cup&rings
…And so…
First group of cup&rings
We approach the stone from its north-eastern end. Walking to the troughs and bowls of water, collecting some of it as we pass, it’s important to recognize that this water would have had some mythic relationship with the carving we are about to see. The water in these bowls may have been used to mix organic paints, or possessed some healing virtues relative to the spirit of the rock; it would certainly have had some relevance to the design, so it’s important to mention them even though they’re Nature’s handiwork. But as we get near the end of these watery cleavages, more of the cup-marks begin to appear.
The first suggestion of a cup-and-ring appears where a single cup has the beginnings of a ring, or an arc, on its eastern side; and there’s a single cup attached to the end of this arc. Just past this is another cup-mark which, when looked at from certain angles, seemed to have had a very faint ring round it—but I’m really not sure. A couple of other single cups are just past these two, roughly in line with them. They’re clearly visible in the photos. Continuing southwestwards we come across a small cluster of cup-and-rings—two of them touching each other gently, all but kissing each other! From these conjoined cup-and-rings, a step to the north brings us to another single cup-and-ring.
Cups & rings & thingsMore cups & rings & things
More intriguingly is what’s found a foot or so further west from the cup-and-rings that kiss! We come across a very faint double cup-and-ring that never seem to have been completed—instead, intruded upon by two or three cup-marks on its northern edge and, more curiously still, what looks to be straight lines intruding the outer ring at various angles, almost in the form of the letter ‘W’—or ‘M’ depending where you’re stood. It can be seen quite clearly in the photos here, both left and right. I couldn’t make my mind up about this particular ‘W’ ingredient, inasmuch as: which parts of it are natural, and which parts are man-made. As I walked round and round this element, crouching down, standing up and gazing at it from as many angles as I could, it never seemed to show itself fully one way or the other. There’s undoubtedly some man-made element about it, but its ambiguity should perhaps be left to the computer-tech rock art kids and give them something to do when they next get some grant money to line their pockets. 😉
Large isolated cup-markPhoto from 2021
Detached from this portion of the petroglyph, a yard south of the main line of rock, is a small, earthfast oval-shaped stone. On it is a large deep cup-marking, bigger than all the other cup-marks on the main stretch of carvings. But back onto the main length of the carving and continuing west, we next step over a notable (but not large) natural scar running roughly north-south across the stone. Stepping onto the other side of this scar, the petroglyphic symbolism gets more expansive and complex.
Spoked-wheels & moreThe first spoked-wheel
On the other side of the crack is another one of Nature’s carvings: a large, deep tear-shaped bowl. About twelve inches above this (north), albeit very faint and almost impossible to see in some lights, is a wide carved circle, at the centre of which is a small cup-mark and, emerging from this central cup and reaching to the outer edges of the ring are a series of at least nine straight carved lines, somewhat like spokes on a wheel (but in no precise geometrical order), giving the impression of what some folk like to call a ‘solar’ symbol. It may indeed have symbolized the sun—but we simply don’t know.
Next down the rock is a small scatter of single cup-marks and then we reach another spoked-wheel or solar symbol, about the same size as the first one and again made up of at least nine ‘spokes’ radiating from a central cup-mark. A couple of single cup-marks are outside or above the ring. Between the two solar wheels is another natural elongated hollow, albeit shallow compared to the others on this length of rock.
Multiple cup-and-ringFaint multiple rings
From here, a few steps further west brings us to two very faint multiple-rings. These intrigue me just as much as the spoked-wheels! Initial views of them seem to show them as double-rings around a central cup, but as I watered them and got views of them from different angles, it was obvious that there was more to them (as usual!), with one of the cups seemingly surrounded by four rings—although the outer ring is seemingly incomplete. I’m not 100% sure about it though and it would be good to get more views around sunrise and sunset when the light paints the stone with richer textures, bringing the spirit of the rock into greater life. The other multiple-ringed motif—three rings in all—is faint, but clearer in giving up its secrets: the outer ring of this looking somewhat deformed as it droops down in a more ovoid form.
As we walk now to the very end of this long stretch of rock, no more carved imagery greets the eye. If there was ever anymore to be seen, the elements and Time itself have faded them from view (the nearby Mask Stone exemplifying the difficulty we have in seeing eroded carvings). If, however we walk off the western end of this rock, down into the uneven mass of roots, branches and decaying trees and keep going westwards, a short distance away is another outcrop, albeit much smaller. It has a single cup-mark on its surface. And, quite obviously, other carvings will still be found beneath the mass of dead trees and vegetation across this piece of land. It was obviously a very important place indeed…
The entire carving is a pictorial narrative whose story has been lost. Its complexity fits into the scheme of other carvings in this locale, possessing a rich tapestry of complex symbols along one stony face. It reminded me somewhat of the equally impressive Blarnaboard (3) carving which, curiously enough, this Solar Stone points directly at four miles away to the southwest, and which also possesses a series of multiple complex symbols cut along a long thin stretch of bedrock stone.
Anyhow, to those of you who just need the simplistic shorthand of the archaeologists: this carving comprises of at least fifteen single cup-marks, five cup-and-rings, a cup-and-double-ring, two cup-and-triple-rings (one of which may actually be cup-and-four rings), and two spoked-wheels or solar symbols. It’s good—even by Ballochraggan standards!
Parish, Nick, “Perthshire: Nether Glenny Field Visit,” in Discovery & Excavation Scotland, 2023.
* Numerous people have reported encountering this dickhead, and a number of local folk as far as Aberfoyle also report him as a miserable angry little man. Please don’t be intimidated by his antics (he’s obviously an unhappy old control freak) as he has no legal basis in Scottish law for you to do what he commands. Just walk on by and leave him to stamp his little feet and rant.
Acknowledgements: Huge thanks for use of the Ordnance Survey map in this site profile, reproduced with the kind permission of the National Library of Scotland.
The best description to get here is, from Ilkley, to go up Wells Road, over the cattle grid, and about 500 yards past the cattle grid take the left turn up Keighley Road. This becomes a truly dodgy dirt-track when you hit the road to the Silver Well cottage on your right, but keep going uphill for another after a short while, but keeping walking uphill for another 500 yards till you reach a good-sized footpath on your right. Walk along here for 50-60 yards and then walk into the vegetation on your right and, just a few yards along, you’ll see a good-sized elongated stone in front of you.
Archaeology & History
Looking down on the cups
This large boulder has about nine cup-marked impressions, both on its eastern topmost part and others a few feet away on a lower south-facing section of the stone. But they’re not all man-made. The cups on the top-east surface are the ones we should be paying attention to. Of the three or four that we can see, at least two of them are man-made: it’s possible that all of them have been man-affected, but without a detailed geomorphological analysis, we’ll never know for sure. The cups and dips on the other, lower section of the rock are Nature’s handiwork. That doesn’t mean they had no importance in the overall mythic nature of the carving but, as with most British petroglyphs, we may never know one way or the other.
References:
Boughey, Keith & Vickerman, E.A., Prehistoric Rock Art of the West Riding, WYAS: Wakefield 2003.
Cup-and-Ring Stone: OS Grid Reference – SE 0467 6373
Archaeology & History
Hartlington Moor (2) stone
After visiting the Hartlington Moor Lane carving, walk further up the track for bang-on 400 yards and you’ll reach a gate on your right. In the field here, about 150 yards in, is an ornate cup-marked stone, which has had the dung of a hundred animals and other natural effects dumped upon it in recent years and, as a result, remains hidden at the mo. A sketch of it was made some time back, showing it’s general design, but it would be good to get some good photos of it (let us know if you manage to locate it).
The carving covers most of the surface of this low rounded stone and a number of the cups are quite deep, which suggests that it had been hidden from view for a long time. There are up to 54 cups, several of which are linked together by carved grooves, giving it what some folk call an ‘hour-glass’ feature. Near the middle of the stone it looked as if there was a faint cup-and-ring with a carved line running out of it.
The worst part about getting to this stone is finding somewhere to park on the B6265 road if you’re visiting by car! The best spot (as of writing) seems to be a small clearing that the farmer has made by the roadside near one of his gates. From Hebden village travel literally one mile (1.62km) east up the B6265 road and (keep your eyes peeled!) you’ll reach the small left-turn down to Hartlington Raikes (and on your left is a dirt-track) – but keep going straight on past this turning for another 450 yards where the farmer’s cleared the edge of the road against his field. Do not obstruct his field! (he’ll have every right to move it with his tractor if you’re an idiot) Naathen – walk back on yourself to the dirt-track (known as Hartlington Moor Lane) 450 yards away and walk up it for 300 yards where there’s a small tree on to your left. On the opposite side of the track, just below the wall right at the very edge of the track itself, you’ll see the small rounded carved stone.
Archaeology & History
Adjacent to a large, flat, elongated ovoid stone that nearly covers the width of the dirt-track is this much smaller stone with a decent scatter of cup-marks on it that was rediscovered only a few years ago by Yvonne Luke of Ilkley.
A rock art menagerie of Morley, Chappell & Hotham
Hartlington Moor Lane (1)
The petroglyph comprises of two standard cup-and-rings, one of which has a carved groove running from the cup to the ring. There may be up to nine other single cup-marks on the stone, many of them quite worn (as you’d expect with it living on a track!); but some of these may be the result of natural erosion. Nonetheless, most of them seem to be the real deal. There are also several oval ‘notches’ on the design, but these may have been made by agricultural/farm machinery scratching across the stone.
From this carving, if you venture another 400 yards up the Hartlington Moor Lane track and go through the gate on your right, about fifty yards into the field is another carving at grid-ref SE 0467 6373, covered in cup-marks, but now covered over in vegetation. If you get a chance to make the stone visible again, let us know! It’s likely that other unrecorded carvings are hiding away in the adjacent fields.
Acknowledgements: With appreciations to Tony Morley, John Hotham and Graeme Chappell for getting us up to this olde stone. Cheers fellas!
