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ECCLESALL WOODS CUP and RING STONE

Ecclesall Cup and Ring stone Ecclesall Cup and Ring stone

Although just over the Derbyshire border this cup and ring stone is definitely worth a mention.
It is difficult to find but well worth the effort.

The carving is cut very deeply in places and is so well defined that some have questioned its age.

However in an issue of "The Derbyshire Archaeological Journal" in 1983 a brief article appeared written by John Barnatt and Peter Frith titled: "A Newly Discovered 'Cup and Ring' Carving in Ecclesall Wood".
To quote from this article -
- The stone was first noticed in 1981 by Peter Frith;
- It is the first prehistoric carving to be discovered in the eastern foothills of the southern Pennines;
- The carving is unusual in several respects: three sub-ovals, deeply cut rings, each surrounding 1-4 shallower cups connected by grooves; the central ring with its internal cups has been emphasised by cutting away the sandstone on three sides to form a raised oval boss (possibly unique); gutters near the edge of the slab which surround much of the carving; the internal grooves subdividing the slab into several irregular, enclosure-like, zones and the various elements are not cut to a consistent depth.

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