One of the fascinating archaeological mysteries is the discovery of the so-called Cochno stone.
Discovered in 1887 by the Reverend James Harvey, the age-old stone measures 13 meters by 7.9 meters and contains around 90 intricate carvings – considered one of the most lovely sets of petroglyphs in Scotland – which many researchers believe depict a cosmic map with details of planets and stars.
The 5,000-year-old “Cochno Stone” contains approximately 90 intricate spirals and intentions that some authors say represent an age-old cosmic map.
Discovered in 1887, the mysterious stone remained buried for decades to protect it from vandalism. On the Cochno Stone in West Dunbartonshire is a stone considered to be the finest example of Bronze Age cup and ring carvings in Europe.
The stone later attracted media attention and visitors soon began to arrive. Over the next few decades their numbers increased steadily as urban Glasgow approached.
In the early 1960s, the Cochno stone became a popular place for local people and children to spend time. There was a growing trend for visitors to carve signs and names into the tender rock, and many people walked on the surface.
In 1964, archaeologists at the University of Glasgow recommended that it be buried under several feet of earth to protect the sculptures from further damage by vandals. The stone has been covered since then.
Situated between the garden of a private estate and a local government park, it is currently overgrown with vegetation and surrounded by trees.
In his book The Prehistoric Rock Art of Southern Scotland, archaeologist Ronald Morris, an expert in age-old rock carvings, described the stone as “one of the finest collections of petroglyphs in Scotland”.
The re-excavation also uncovered 19th- and 20th-century graffiti etched along the whirlpools, as well as painted lines deliberately made by archaeologist Ludovic Maclellan Mann, who worked at the site in 1937. Mann painted the lines on the Cochno stone to lend a hand measure prehistoric works of art and see if there is a connection to astronomical phenomena such as eclipses.
Mann “tried to prove that symbols could predict eclipses and mark the movements of the sun and moon in prehistory” he said Kenny Brophy, archaeologist and senior lecturer at the University of Glasgow.
He said Mann's own data ultimately disproved the archaeologist's theory.
Then as now, there is disagreement among archaeologists as to what meaning these symbols meant to those who carved them. Explanations include tribal symbols and territorial markings, maps, star representations, and even containers for fluids used in rituals. Similar sites exist throughout northern Europe, although this is one of the most extensive.
Image Source: Pixabay.com
