Summary

Prehistoric rock art comprising three small sandstone panels of Neolithic/early Bronze Age date (approximately 3800 BC to 1500 BC).

Source: Historic England

Details

Principal elements: Prehistoric rock art comprising three small sandstone panels of Neolithic/early Bronze Age date (approximately 3800 BC to 1500 BC).

Description: the more westerly of this compact group is a sandstone outcrop (ERA 125) 0.5m long and 0.45m wide, which slopes down gently from west to east. There is a natural fissure oriented east to west and three closely sited and separate motifs are present: the first situated to the north of the natural fissure is a cupmark surrounded by a penannular, with a second cupmark and penannular immediately to its south west which also has a radial groove; the third motif lies to the south of a natural fissure and is visible as a cup mark with a penannular and a radial groove. The more northerly outcrop of the group (ERA 124) is 1.2m by 0.8m and bears two well-defined cups, one with a complete ring and a groove connecting it to a second, larger cup; a second groove leads to the edge of the outcrop. The third outcrop (ERA 392) measures 0.5m by 0.45m and bears a single cup with a groove.

Extent of scheduling: a 12m diameter circle, which includes the three outcrops defined around a central point within the group.

Source: Historic England

Reasons for Scheduling

The prehistoric rock art on Weetwood Moor, 702m north east of Wooler Post Office Radio Station, is scheduled for the following principal reasons:
* Survival: despite their susceptibility to natural weathering, the panels are reasonably well preserved;
* Documentation: ritual and religious sites of Prehistoric Britain including rock art are relatively scarce and lack contemporary documentation, hence the value of the archaeological remains is enhanced as they provide our only evidence of the belief system and society which produced them;
* Diversity: a number of individual motifs are represented ranging from simple cups to more complex forms;
* Potential: these survivals will contribute to our knowledge of prehistoric society through study of the individual motifs and through an increased understanding of the circumstances in which rock art was created and the sites used;
* Group value: taken as a group with other rock art in the vicinity, they will enhance both our understanding of the inter-relationships between individual panels and their relationship to the wider landscape. The panels lie in the vicinity of nearby scheduled prehistoric rock art at Weetwood and Fowberry.

Source: Historic England

Sources

Books and journals
Mazel, et al (eds), Art as Metaphor: The Prehistoric Rock-Art of Britain, (2007)
Websites
, accessed from http://archaeologydataservice.ac.uk/era/section/access/results.jsf

Source: Historic England