Description

This cluster of cup-and-ring marked rock outcrops is situated on the W shoulder of Creag Mhor, largely in a forest clearing, about 320m S of Ormaig farmsteading. The cluster consists of two principal groups of marks as well as four lesser sets.

The lower of the two major exposures is a gently sloping rock-sheet on which the decoration is divided into two sections; the E half was only revealed in 1974 and the carvings are unusually fresh, with individual peckmarks clearly visible. There are some nineteenth century graffitti and a mass of carvings, including three 'rosettes'.

A short distance N of the above is a steeply sloping finger of bare rock, which is much weathered. It is profusely decorated with designs which include closely spaced cups, rings and channels. A most unusual feature for Scottish rock art is a series of 7 short parallel grooves. To the W and N of these main groups are four smaller outcrops bearing a variety of cupmarks and cups with single rings, some with gutters.

The area to be scheduled measures 55m from NNE to SSW by 40 transversely, to include all the carvings and an area around in which associated remains may survive.

Source: Historic Environment Scotland

Statement of Scheduling

The monument is of national importance because it is a well-preserved cluster of early prehistoric rock carvings which are not only diverse, but include a number of unusual features. In terms of quality this group compares well with similar sites in Kilmartin Valley which are now in the guardianship of the Secretary of State; together this remarkable concentration can be compared with similar regional groups in Strathtay, the Machars if Wigtown and in Northumberland, and has the potential to provide information about late Neolithic or Bronze Age life, particularly its ritual aspects.

Source: Historic Environment Scotland

Sources

Bibliography

RCAHMS records the monument as NM 80 SW 8.

Source: Historic Environment Scotland