One recent evening I switched on the TV a few minutes too early and came across the last few minutes of a documentary describing the rock art of Kilmartin Glen in mid Ayrshire in the west coast area of Scotland. Although I knew about the standing stones and other prehistoric sites in Scotland and the Hebrides, I had never heard of this before and further investigation intrigued me.
As a stone carver for many years, I, of course, use metal rasps and chisels, but these carvings have proved to be from the Neolithic period 4300 -2000 BC to the Bronze Age i.e.2500-700BC and were created before the use of metal tools. They appear to have been made by using other stones to ‘peck out’ the surface patterns. Fragments of quartz have been found nearby which indicate that this was probably one of the materials used.
The carvings consist mainly of spirals known as ‘ring marks’ and ‘cup marks’ grouped together in patterns or scattered over the surface of the natural formation of the rocky outcrops. The ring marks are spirals or concentric circles, whilst the cup marks are circular hollows of differing sizes and levels.
It has been extremely difficult to date these amazing works but fortunately there have been fresh approaches by university fieldwork groups who have recorded these carvings so as to understand their dispersal in Scotland.
Various suggestions have been made as to the meaning of these puzzling patterns; it may be that they could mark the way to a larger shrine or meeting place. In the vicinity are groups of prehistoric standing stones, burial cairns and a henge.
The museum at Kilmarten, which had been closed for some time, re-opened in September 2023 and also organises rock art trails in the Glen, in fact no other place in Scotland has such a concentration of prehistory the origins of which still remains a mystery.
This fascinating area of Scotland is certainly worth a visit if you are interested in archaeology, prehistory or sculpture, as well as the joy of discovering a beautiful landscape.
ROCK ART IN STRUCTURES
Cup-marked and cup-and-ring marked stones are also found in later prehistoric structures, such as Iron Age hillforts, brochs, and souterrains. While this could be coincidental use of available building material, the stones often seem to be deliberately positioned in entrances and other important parts of these structures. This could suggest that rock art held long-lasting significance for these later communities, or that its re-use was a symbolic revival of ancient values – or maybe they simply enjoyed looking at the designs. Carved stones and fragments of larger carved rocks are occasionally built into the walls of houses and barns, possibly for decorative reasons.