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Cup Marked Stone
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Of the two cup and ring marked rocks recorded in Ilderton parish in the Beckensall archive this site gave me two problems. Firstly, it lies a good 1km NW of Heddon Hill close to the promontory Iron Age hill fort just SE of Middleton Dene. Secondly, I wasn't completely convinced it showed anything other than natural erosion cups and grooves although the Archive record describes a minimum of 27 cups.
The weather wasn't good as you could barely stand up in the cold wind blowing off Cheviot and perhaps on a better day I might have been more amenable. Clearly the experts believe it (at least partly) artificial. The nearby site at South Middleton Moor is undoubdetly a carved cup and ring and the area is rich in ancient settlement, clearance and burial cairns.
The two sites are well to the west of the main cup and ring areas of Northumberland and the rock type here is mainly volcanic. The land here was clearly well settled and cultivated for a long time period although at above 200m now given over to sheep grazing.
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Posted by rockandy
22nd January 2006ce
Edited 22nd January 2006ce
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