Details

The monument includes an earthfast rock with carvings on its surface. It is
located in open moorland on the eastern edge of Howdale Moor.
This is the easternmost extent of the sandstone, heather covered moor
characteristic of the North York Moors. Today the moor is little used but
archaeological evidence indicates that this has not always been the case. The
prehistoric period in particular saw extensive agricultural use of the area.
It was also used for burials and activities associated with the
carving of patterns on exposed rock. Remains of these activities survive
today.
The carvings are on the flat upper face of an earthfast rock measuring
1.6m by 1.2m. The carving includes approximately 40 cup marks, 3 with
surrounding rings and a comb style pattern. This carved rock is close to a
group of similar monuments located 900m to the east.

MAP EXTRACT
The site of the monument is shown on the attached map extract.
It includes a 2 metre boundary around the archaeological features,
considered to be essential for the monument's support and preservation.

Source: Historic England

Reasons for Scheduling

Prehistoric rock art is found on natural rock outcrops in many areas of upland
Britain. It is especially common in the north of England in Northumberland,
Durham and North and West Yorkshire. The most common form of decoration is the
`cup and ring' marking where expanses of small cup-like hollows are pecked
into the surface of the rock. These cups may be surrounded by one or more
`rings'. Single pecked lines extending from the cup through the `rings' may
also exist, providing the design with a `tail'. Pecked lines or grooves can
also exist in isolation from cup and ring decoration. Other shapes and
patterns also occur, but are less frequent. Carvings may occur singly, in
small groups, or may cover extensive areas of rock surface. They date to the
Late Neolithic and Bronze Age periods (c.2800-500 BC) and provide one of our
most important insights into prehistoric `art'. The exact meaning of the
designs remains unknown, but they may be interpreted as sacred or religious
symbols.
Frequently they are found close to contemporary burial monuments and the
symbols are also found on portable stones placed directly next to burials or
incorporated in burial mounds. Around 800 examples of prehistoric rock-art
have been recorded in England. This is unlikely to be a realistic reflection
of the number carved in prehistory. Many will have been overgrown or destroyed
in activities such as quarrying. All positively identified prehistoric rock
art sites exhibiting a significant group of designs will normally be
identified as nationally important.

The cup and ring marked rock 700m south east of Howdale Farm survives well.
Such monuments are rare in the North York Moors and this example is part of a
concentration of similar carved rocks on Howdale Moor. Taken with the
surrounding rock art and other prehistoric sites, the monument offers
important scope for understanding the changing patterns of ritual and social
activities in the area during the prehistoric period.

Source: Historic England

Sources

Books and journals
Bradley, R, Rock Art and the Prehistory of Atlantic Europe, (1997)

Source: Historic England