Queries. 11. Holed Stone at Claverton Down.
In the field called Bushey Norwood, on Claverton Down, is an upright stone with a hole in it. As this has been and may be again taken for a holed stone of prehistoric origin, such as the Cornish Men-an-Tol and others of like nature, it may be well to know its origin. The hole in the stone is obviously due to the limestone weathering when the stone was recumbent on its bed. I have heard two accounts of its origin, firstly that it was erected to commemorate the fatal duel between Viscount du Barri and Count de Rice, and more prosately that it commemorates a favourite horse. Can anyone give accurate information on this point? – A.T.W., Monkton Combe. (Bath Chronicle, 1st July 1933.)
Some years ago I asked a friend the history of this stone, and was told that it was a rubbing post for horses or cattle. They were tethered to it – a rope being passed through a hole in the stone, and that such stones were not uncommon. I do not know if this is correct. M.A., Bath. (Bath Chronicle, 29th July 1933)
Mr Gerald Grey writes, “I know the stone of old. There were many like it when first I knew Bushey Norwood. They were lying on the surface. The late squire, Mr Henry Duncan Skrine, had this particular stone raised upright to mark the spot where he had one or two favourite horses buried. The rest of the stones were used in the Bath Botanical Gardens and the Clifton Zoo for making rockeries. The site of the Du Barri duel was on the boundary of Claverton and Hampton Downs [...]” – A.T.W., Monkton Combe. (Bath Chronicle, 5th August 1933)
Like all such exchanges things get shirty after a bit, and on the 12th August K.E.S from Exmouth writes to say everyone’s wrong (“The response to the inquiry for exact information has been far from exact”). I would type it all out but I didn’t like his righteous tone. “There can be little doubt that these stones were connected with the religious rites of Ancient Britons, and they were probably deliberately cast down either in military attack or to end, by forcible means, the religious practices of the Priests of the Sun.”