Long Stone, Ilkley Moor, West Yorkshire

Cup-Marked Stone:  OS Grid Reference – SE 13282 46222

Also Known as:

1. Carving no.161 (Hedges)
2. Carving no.326 (Boughey & Vickerman)

Getting Here

Follow the same directions to reach the Pancake Stone, but about 100 yards west, following the footpath that runs along the edge of the ridge (towards the large Haystack Rock a few hundred yards west), watch out for these large seemingly split rocks, with one elongated length of stone by the pathside.  You can’t really miss it!

Archaeology & History

Very little’s been said of this carving as it’s just one more of the many rocks with just a solitary cup-marking etched on top — as we can see in the photo.  The cup-mark is near the bottom, southeast-ish portion of the rock and is plain to see.

(Note: I’m not 100% sure that I’ve got Boughey & Vickerman’s (2003) numbered carving correct here.  They describe a carved rock very close by here as an “upstanding rock, part of a large split rock,” as their ‘number 326’ carving — which is roughly similar; though I’m not totally sure!  No other single cup-marked stone is listed in their survey close by, so assume it’s the same one as in their work.)

References:

1. Boughey, Keith & Vickerman, E.A., Prehistoric Rock Art of the West Riding, West Yorkshire Archaeology Service 2003.
2. Hedges, John, The Carved Rocks on Rombalds Moor, WYMCC: Wakefield 1986.

© Paul Bennett, The Northern Antiquarian