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Pikestones

Pikestones Spiral carving

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IronMan I
IronMan Dec 16, 2002 12:24:26

http://www.themodernantiquarian.com/image.php?image_id=2461

While looking through and tidying up one or two site entries for my local area I was reminded of this peculiarity (see above image). Aspinall/Bluegloves assured me some time ago that the carving was contemporary with the site, and I kind of just left it at that... looking at the photo again though, I remain unconvinced. Things just don't seem to ring true with it... Anyways, just thought I'd take advantage of the new site-specific forum function :-)

If you look at my shot the carving is pretty deep and almost geometric with no signs of aging. Most other carvings I've seen have really mellowed over the years, even to the extent where they are barely recognisable, but there doesn't seem to be any sign of that here.

I recently got hold of a few local historic walk books, all of which are pretty good for coverage of prehistoric stuff BTW. One of the books had a really lengthy piece on the Pikestones but didn't mention the carvings once, which I found pretty odd... The book's from 1988, so it even got me wondering whether the carving's appeared since then.

Rhiannon posted up a response about the Pikestones being mentioned in Northern Earth issue 54, and I've visited the website to find they're also mentioned in issue 73. Does anyone have those issues? I'm not sure if the mag is still going and the articles in question might not even mention the carving at all, so it'd be a bit of a waste of cash (something which I'm pretty short of at the mo' anyway!)

Failing that, does anyone know anything about this site, or even just have an opinion based on the pix... I'll try to get back there soonish, and get some better shots, but in the meantime this is all I've got to go off.

IM

R Rhiannon
Rhiannon Dec 16, 2002 13:05:00
Replying to IronMan

I said that? so I did. I've got some Northern Earths but they're last year's: I expect the magazine is still going, it's only tiny and about a £1 I think.

My twopennorth on the matter, though I'm sure lots of other people are in a much better position to comment: the spiral is awfully perfect, and the groove is very narrow and precise (too narrow to be 'pecked out' so well?), and there's not much lichen in it though there's plenty on the surrounding stone.

Is it unusual in that it's got a very straight line connecting it with the ground? The few spirals I've seen have been just spirally, isolated. It reminds me of a fiddlehead of a fern.

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