ON ANCIENT INSCRIBED STONES. 331 



several carved stones, and the stone in question formed one of 

 the heap. 



I received a letter from Mr. Albert Way on the subject of 

 ray discovery, in which he says that, with one exception, all the 

 stones bearing these mysterious markings have hitherto been 

 found on rocks in their natural position, and all in a limited 

 district, east of the rivers Till and Breamish, and all north of 

 the Aln (I am informed that one has recently been found cut on 

 the solid rock at Tosson, near Rothbury). 



The first instance of a detached piece of rock, bearing the con- 

 centric circles, was found in draining last year, and obtained 

 for the Duke of Northumberland's museum at Alnwick. 



The discovery of an example so far south as Black Heddon 

 gives an extended character to the curious subject of these sym- 

 bols. Mr. Way remarks that they are certainly among the 

 earliest vestiges we possess of the first occupants of Northumber- 

 land. He considers them as rude plans of entrenched works. 



In the month of June I had my attention drawn to a stone, 

 somewhat similar in character, by Mr. Robson, an intelligent 

 blacksmith in the village of Inghoe, also in this parish; it was 

 lying on the top of a wall surrounding a small field in that place. 

 The markings on the stone are very different from those on that 

 at Black Heddon. That at Inghoe also contains five circles, but 

 each is broken at the same point, which forms a radius from the 

 centre to the outside circle, and from that point to the edge of 

 the stone a straight channel is picked out. At the opposite side 

 of the stone there are three holes near together— from one there 

 is a line which joins it to the outside circle; the lines from the 

 two other holes unite, and then go in one line to the outside 

 circle. Mr. Way suggests that the radius, which is frequently 

 found, may design the covered entrance passage traversing the 

 concentric bosses or stockades of the entrenched works. The 

 district north of the Aln presents numerous circular camps, with 

 concentric defences. We have also in these camps occasionally 

 what have been called hut-circles, namely, the circular founda- 

 tions of primitive dwellings; and such dwellings may have been 

 rudely designed by the central cavity in such circles. From 



