Tag: shipley

Intake Farm, Hawksworth, West Yorkshire

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Cup-Marked Stone:  OS Grid Reference – SE 15867 41244

Getting Here

Intake Farm carving

In Hawksworth village, less than 100 yards past the primary school, take the footpath on your left into the open fields.  200 yards down the fields, go over the stile on your right, into the next field and walk diagonally across it (SW) for 250 yards until you reach the wall; then walk alongside it, west, for another 150 yards where the walling goes due south and walk down here for 135 yards, going through the gate at the bottom into the next field and, at the bottom of this one go through the gate and bear right.  OK, now walk along the wall-side for 55 yards and you’re just about standing on it!  Alternatively you can reach it via the Hawksworth Spring (1) and (4) carvings, following the wall along for roughly 150 yards till you reach the gate. Go through here and walk diagonally NNW across the field for nearly 150 yards where you’ll see the stone stuck out in front of the wall.

Archaeology & History

My first sight of this came about as I walked alongside the walling.  Approaching the stone, I noticed what looked like a recent cup-like marking with a curved line emerging from it on its eastern surface; but it didn’t look too old and was more like the scratch-marks you see sometimes when farmers have been dragging rocks along to be used in walling.  So I shrugged in slight disappointment—until the far-side, the western-side of the stone came into view.

Line of cups
Main scatter of cups

Sloping ever-so-slightly down into the ground, the surface of the stone had a cluster of quite worn, shallow, but distinct cup-markings between one and two inches across, four of which ran in a line from the top to the edge of the stone in a slight curve.  As I walked round it, looking from different angles, it became obvious that two or three other cups existed—mainly from the top to the western side of the rock.  One seemed to exist near the edge, whilst two other faint ones sat to the side of the line-of-four—almost creating a square formation.  From some angles it looked as if there may be faint lines running between some of the cups but (as usual) the sunlight didn’t really help highlight them and they could just be faded erosion lines.

Looking down at the cups
Water & sunlight & cups

It was obvious that a section of the stone on its southern edge had been broken off in the not-too-distant past, raising the idea that the design may originally have been larger than its present form.  This thought returned when I walked another 60 yards west along the wall and came across a broken section of stone that had been placed into it, pretty recently, and on its vertical face noticed a single cup-mark in a good state of preservation, indicating that it had either been cut recently or instead been dug out of the ground not too long ago and shown intself to the world after a sleep of several millenia.  Look at it when you have a gander at the main carving here and make up your own mind….

© Paul Bennett, The Northern Antiquarian

Hawksworth Spring (04), Hawksworth, West Yorkshire

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Cup-Marked Stone:  OS Grid Reference – SE 15802 41206

Getting Here

Hawksworth Spring (04)

Take the same directions as if you’re going to visit the Hawksworth Spring (1) carving.  From here, the small footpath at its side keeps going uphill, curving to the right and following the line of walling.  After about 20 yards where the land begins to level out, keep your eyes peeled for a small elongated earthfast rock, less than three feet long, just to the left of the path and only three or four yards away from the wall.  If the leaves have covered the stone, get on your hands and knees and scrub around a bit.  You’ll find it!

Archaeology & History

Primary cup-marking

This was a frustrating find as there are several elements on the stone, only one of which I could be 100% certain about – and that’s the singular cup-marking on the top-left of the stone.  Just next to this is what looks to be another one, unfinished, cut into a natural fissure in the rock—but the daylight was frustrating, allowing only glimpses of visual clarity on the stone.  At the other end of the stone, as the photo shows, are what stand out as two or three more cup-marks, but these seem geophysical in nature—although examples such as these scatter the works of Boughey & Vickerman (2003; 2018) as authentic, which shows the problem we all have as rock art students. Anyhow, at least one of these cups is the real deal.  I’ll let the computer-tech lads sort the rest of it out for us…

© Paul Bennett, The Northern Antiquarian

Hawksworth Spring (03), Hawksworth, West Yorkshire

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Cup-Marked Stone:  OS Grid Reference – SE 15807 41196

Getting Here

Hawksworth Spring (3) CR

Once you’ve located the carvings of Hawksworth Spring (1) and (2), walk up the slope towards the topmost section of the walling where the land begins to level out.  Hereby you’ll see the Hawksworth Spring (4) carving (if it’s not covered in leaves) several yards below the wall. Turn around and look diagonally to your left, into the trees, where you need to walk into and beneath the overhanging holly branches.  Here you’ll reach the large earthfast rock whose edge rests up against the trunk of a larger tree.  You can’t miss it!

Archaeology & History

Notable curious “cups”

I’m not 100% convinced that this a prehistoric design, despite it being listed as such in Boughey & Vickerman’s (2003) survey—although, to be fair, they do suggest it as being “doubtful.”  The two most notable so-called “cups” have more of a recent hallmark to them and the other elements are troublesome to see with any certainty, but they may be geophysical in nature.  Their description of it told us this was a “fairly large fine-grained rock with some included pebbles.  Two pairs of cups, one pair connected by groove”.  Make of it what you will….

References:

  1. Boughey, Keith & Vickerman, E.A., Prehistoric Rock Art of the West Riding, WYAS: Wakefield 2003.

© Paul Bennett, The Northern Antiquarian

Glen Gate, Baildon, West Yorkshire

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Cup-and-Ring Stone (lost):  OS Grid Reference – SE 1347 3882

Also Known as:

  1. Carving no.143 (Boughey & Vickerman)

Archaeology & History

In Johnnie Gray’s (aka Harry Speight) early work on Airedale (1891), he described a number of the prehistoric sites on and around Baildon Moor and Shipley Glen  Almost all of the things he wrote about have been identified, but a cup-and-ring stone at “Glen gate” (as he called it) remains elusive.  He wrote:

“After crossing the stream from the Glen gate, and going about thirty paces, we come upon…an incised stone, whereon are a number of circling lines and cup-like cavities — one at each corner, with a long line branching off to the north-east; but this stone unfortunately has got broken, and lying on the main path is much defaced.”

Prod Gate on 1852 map

The exact location of this has proven difficult as the name ‘Glen gate’ was obviously a local one as it wasn’t included on the Ordnance Surveys of the period.  There are two named “gates” hereby: one is Prod Gate at the east end of Prod Lane, and the other is Trench Gate a few hundred yards west at the other end of Prod Lane.  But the most likely gate of the two would be Prod Gate.  When Speight wrote his words, a stream existed that crossed the track about 70 yards west of Prod Gate, whereas no such water-course existed anywhere close to Trench Gate.  And so we assume that he was writing about “the stream from the Glen (Prod) Gate.”

Having said all that, there are no known petroglyphs like the one that Speight described anywhere hereby.  There are a couple of so-called “carvings” that have been included in so-called official surveys (Boughey & Vickerman 141  and 142; aka ERA- 2445 and ERA-2446) another 150 yards or so on the left-side of the road that could have been regarded as contenders, but these stones have just a mix of modern and natural markings and can be discounted.  In all likelihood, this impressive-sounding petroglyph was broken up and destroyed when the proper road was laid in the middle of the 20th century; or perhaps broken up and stuck into one of the garden walls along the roadside.  Either way, the carving seems long lost.

References:

  1. Boughey, K.J.S. & Vickerman, E.A., Prehistoric Rock Art of the West Riding, WYAS: Leeds 2003.
  2. Gray, Johnnie, Through Airedale from Goole to Malham, Walker & Laycock: Leeds 1891.

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. 

© Paul Bennett, The Northern Antiquarian

Acrehowe Well, Baildon Moor, West Yorkshire

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Healing Well:  OS Grid Reference – SE 14733 40596

Also Known as:

  1. Acre Well

Archaeology & History

Up there, in the rushes…

First illustrated on the 1852 Ordnance Survey map of the area and now only visible as a small marshy area, this once fast-flowing well gained its name from the old stone cross (very probably a standing stone before that) four hundred feet west of here, called Acrehowe Cross, now gone.  It is possible that this ‘cross’ gave the well a local reputation as a holy well.  A solitary path once led to the well, whose waters rise up through a coal seam giving the place its medicinal qualities, which have sadly been forgotten. Up and down this path towards Baildon village one would have regularly met a local character in the 19th century known as “Dinnis” (his real name was Joseph Halliday) who, along with his partner would take ‘kits’ (a large bucket with parallel sides) of water from the well into the village and sell it for a halfpenny each.

Site shown on 1852 map

Later in the 19th century, a cottage was built here (known as Acre Cottage) and gained its water supply from the well.  This was curtailed with the construction of the Baildon Moor reservoirs by the roadside, which took the water from both here and the nearby Spink Well (over the hill on the far side of the golf course), leaving us with little more than the trickling water we see today, just a little further down from its original location.

References:

  1. la Page, John, The Story of Baildon, William Byles: Bradford 1951.

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. 

© Paul Bennett, The Northern Antiquarian

Lane End, Baildon, Shipley, West Yorkshire

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Cup-Marked Stone (destroyed):  OS Grid Reference – SE 152 393

Also Known as:

  1. Carving no.195

Archaeology & History

A basic cup-marked stone could once be seen up near the top of the slope behind the Bay Horse pub as you’re heading up to Baildon village.  The site would seem to have been destroyed following the demolition of buildings thereby.  A photograph of the carving was taken and it was described, albeit briefly, by Sidney Jackson (1961), who told:

“A small boulder with two cups in it was found at the junction of a narrow bye road leading to 30 Lane Ends, Baildon, with the road which runs behind the Bay Horse Inn, on 12 April (1961), by Mr Alan E. Rowe, 10 Beaufort Grove, Bolton, Bradford  and a photograph of it was taken for the Museum Reference Collection.”

Years back I contacted the Bradford Museum about this photo and they were about as helpful as a zionist in Palestine! – i.e., I never got to see it.  It would be good if someone could locate the image.

References:

  1. Boughey, Keith & Vickerman, E.A., Prehistoric Rock Art of the West Riding, WYAS: Wakefield 2003.
  2. Jackson, Sidney, “Cup-marked Boulders, Baildon Finds,” in Cartwright Hall Archaeology Group Bulletin, volume 6, no. 6, 1961.

© Paul Bennett, The Northern Antiquarian

Sunnybank Well, Hawksworth, West Yorkshire

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Healing Well:  OS Grid Reference – SE 16228 40696

Getting Here

Sunnybank Well spring

My walk up to this place took me off the main A6038 Hollins Hill road, across from the petrol station and up the scruffy disused road to the hamlet of Tong Park, bending round the houses to the right when they appear.  Keep along this old track, then veer right, down the slope and along the footpath and into the trees under the railway arches, keeping on until you reach the lake on your left.  At the end of the lake, cross the bridge and follow the footpath as it bends to the left and into the trees.  You’ll go over a stile and then about 50 yards along, the stream that crosses the path emerges from a crack in the rocks on your right.  You’re here!

Archaeology & History

Site shown on 1852 map

All history and tradition of this site seems long gone. It was shown on the 1852 Ordnance Survey map of the region and doubtless receives its name from the location, as the spring of water emerges from beneath the sloping embankment which is a bit of a sun-trap in Spring and Summer.  It makes sense.  Although I can find no reference to any medicinal attributes, the waters of Sunnybank Well are cold, fresh and drinkable.

References:

  1. Shepherd, Val, Historic Wells in and Around Bradford, HOAP: Wymeswold 1994.

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. 

© Paul Bennett, The Northern Antiquarian

Hawksworth Spring (02), Hawksworth, West Yorkshire

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Cup-and-Ring Stone:  OS Grid Reference – SE 15774 41191

Getting Here

Here’s the one yer after!

You can take the same directions to get here is you follow the route for the Hawksworth Spring (01) carving, or take this alternative route. Take the standard road from Guiseley along Hawksworth Road.  When you reach the first row of old houses in the village, a couple of hundred yards on you reach the village school and, shortly after the footpath is sign-posted.  Walk left (downhill) through the field for half-a-mile until you reach the woods.  100 yards into the into the trees, walk to your right and follow the line of walling straight for 400 yards, then veering right up the slope and it then slowly bends round, keeping to the wallside all along. It then starts heading back downhill.  As it does so, 10 yards from the wall into the woods you’ll see the broken triangular rock of the Hawksworth Spring (01) carving.  Walk another 10 yards where the large holly bushes are and you’ll see the large sloping stone in front of you.

Archaeology & History

This carving is similar in nature to its companion 10 yards away, inasmuch as each of them possess two small arcs of cup-marks almost in the same format, very close together, one above the other near the top of the stone.  It’s possible that the mythic nature/function of this particular element of arcs is the same on each stone—although fuck knows what it might be!

Clear line & faint line of arcs
Clear arc of cups

Below this double arc (only one of which is clearly visible in the photos) we see a scatter of other cup-marks—perhaps six, perhaps seven—one of which appears to have a very faint incomplete ring round it.  When Liz Sykes and I visited the place, the light of day and the shadows across the rock didn’t help to convince us one way or the other, so we await news from other visitors who get better light conditions to tell us whether our hopeful eyes were deceiving us or not.  There are a number of other marks on its surface, but these are much more recent and very obviously cut, or rather scratched, by metal artifacts with no bearing on the prehistoric design.

References:

  1. Boughey, K.J.S. and Vickerman, E.A., Prehistoric Rock of the West Riding (Supplement), Shipley 2018.

Acknowledgements:  Huge thanks to Liz Sykes for her renowned cleaning skills!

© Paul Bennett, The Northern Antiquarian

Hawksworth Spring (01), Hawksworth, West Yorkshire

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Cup-and-Ring Stone:  OS Grid Reference – SE 15767 41195

Getting Here

Looking down on the stone

Through Baildon town centre, take the road onto Baildon Moor, but instead of turning left up to Baildon Hill, keep straight on the Hawksworth road and 100 yards along you’ll see a car-park is on the right-hand side, just before you start going downhill.  From here, walk down the road a couple of hundred yards until you see the footpath (keep your eyes peeled!) turning right towards The Whitehouse, and from there take the footpath dead straight down to the woods below.  Cross the stream, turn right, then immediately left uphill by the wall-side.  Shortly before reaching the top you’ll see a large triangular sloping slab of rock with a tree at its top.  That’s it!   Alternatively you can come via Hawksworth village by following the directions to the Hawksworth Spring (02) carving, which is just 10 yards east of this one.  Easy!

Archaeology & History

Sketch of carving (after Hedges 1986)
Note the faint cup, top-right

This minimalist design is best seen from above the adjacent rock which, in times gone by, was attached to this very same stone.   The main aspect of the carving are the two short rows of three cups, running almost alongside each other, in a likeness which my compatriot Liz Sykes said “was like some animal footprints.” It’s not a bad description to be honest (this same motif is found on a companion petroglyph just a few yards to the east: the Hawksworth Spring [2] stone).  If you follow the direction of the “animal tracks” to the western end of the stone, you’ll see another isolated cup with a faint incomplete ring around it.  You can just make it out on the photo to the right.  Another single cup-mark seems apparent two-thirds the way down the stone.

References:

  1. Hedges, John (ed.), The Carved Rocks on Rombalds Moor, WYMCC: Wakefield 1986.

Acknowledgements:  Huge thanks to Liz Sykes for her renowned cleaning skills!

© Paul Bennett, The Northern Antiquarian

Brackendale Mills, Thackley, Bradford, West Yorkshire

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Cup-Marked Stone (missing):  OS Grid Reference – SE 1687 3868

Archaeology & History

Sketch of the missing cup-marked stone

This carving was originally located somewhere close to the old disused Brackenhall Mills on the edge of Thackley, just before you drop down to Thackley tunnel.  It was uprooted sometime in the 1950s and taken several miles away to the Cartwright Hall Museum at Manningham, Bradford, where it sat outdoors behind some fencing for many a-year, accompanied by the large fossil of an ancient tree.

I first saw it there when I lived close by in 1981, in the days before I had such a thing as a camera.  Hence I only have this scruffy old sketch of the design, which I did without adding any notes to help remind me which carving it was!  So this sketch has sat, all-but-forgotten, on a scrap of paper since then, until I recently sussed out which carving it was!

The stone itself was akin to a very large portable rock, with a simplistic design consisting of at least nine cup-marks cut into one of the rounded faces.  One account of the stone suggested there may have been a possible incomplete ring around one of the cups.  When I went back to see the stone about 20 years ago, it had gone.  So I called into the adjacent museum to inquire what had become of it.  The curator (or whoever it was) that I spoke with told me that the stone had been put into a box and placed in the cellars, but refused to let me see it.  I asked to make an appointment to see the stone and he refused that too.  It has not been seen since.  Does anyone know what’s become of it?

References:

  1. Keighley, J.J., “The Prehistoric Period,” in Faull & Moorhouse’s, West Yorkshire: An Archaeological Survey to AD 1500 (WYMCC: Wakefield 1981).
  2. Yorkshire Observer, January 17, 1953

© Paul Bennett, The Northern Antiquarian