160 Mr. George Tate on Ancient Sculptured Rocks, ^c. 



•weather, the figures are smoothed, rounded, and more artistic 

 looking — this nature, not art, has accomplished. This stone 

 has been taken from its original position, and is now in 

 Alnwick Castle. 



A loose stone was found when draining a field west of 

 Beanley. It is but a fragment, and has one typical figure 

 — four incomplete concentric circles around a cup ; this may 

 have been connected with an interment — Plate II., fig. 3. 



Higher up the encampment of the Eglingham hills than 

 the fort, there is a platform of sandstone rock breaking out 

 from the hill ; and on the scalp of the rock I detected in 

 several places traces of typical inscriptions. 



Rothhury. 



The great sandstone ridge ranges from Eglingham and 

 Beanley across the central part of the county towards Roth- 

 bury, near to which is a cave \\\ the rock called " Cartington 

 Cove ;" concentric circles with central hollows were incised 

 within this cave. Mr. Williamson of Alnwick, from whom I 

 had this information, played around them when a boy more 

 than fifty years ago ; and they were then popularly called 

 " Cups and Saucers." Nearly all of them have been destroyed 

 by the wedges and hammers of quarrymen ; but on visiting 

 the spot in 1859, I found sufficient traces to confirm Mr. 

 Williamson's testimony. This is the most southern locality 

 in Northumberland, where inscriptions on a rock in situ 

 have been discovered. Here, too, the sculptures are in the 

 midst of ancient British camps and sepulchres. Most in- 

 structive remains of that people were found not far from this 

 cave, at Tosson, where four cists were opened containing the 

 skeletons of a race whose crania were of the Brachy-cephalic 

 type; and by their side were placed urns with the character- 

 istic scorings of the ancient British period, ornaments made 

 of Cannel coal, a bronze buckle, and an iron weapon.* 



Stamfordham. 



Though no inscribed rock in situ has been noticed further 

 southward in Northumberland than Cartington Cove, three 

 loose stones have been discovered by the Rev. John Bigge,t in 

 the parish of Stamfordham, some sixteen miles further south- 

 ward. 



* Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland, vol, iv., p. 61. 

 t Transactions of the Tyneside Club, vol, iv., p. 333. 



