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Back O' Hill Farm cup marked stone is a prehistoric rock art monument located in Renfrewshire, Scotland. The stone bears cup marks—simple circular depressions pecked into its surface—a form of rock art created during the Neolithic and Bronze Age periods. Cup marked stones are found across Britain and Ireland, though their precise purpose remains debated amongst archaeologists; interpretations range from ritual or ceremonial significance to territorial markers or hunting magic.
The monument rests upon bedrock of the Strathclyde Group, sedimentary rocks formed during the Visean period of the Carboniferous era. This geological foundation has provided a durable canvas for the cup marks, which have survived millennia of exposure to the Scottish climate. The stone's location at Back O' Hill Farm preserves evidence of human engagement with the landscape during prehistory, when communities marked significant places within their territories.
The cup marked stone is protected as a scheduled monument by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM12808, recognising its archaeological importance and the need to preserve this rare record of prehistoric artistic expression. Such rocks form part of the wider corpus of non-portable rock art that anchors our understanding of early symbolic behaviour in Scotland's past.
Back O' Hill Farm, cup marked stone 235m WNW of is a scheduled monument protected by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM12808. View the official record →
Back O' Hill Farm cup marked stone is a prehistoric rock art monument located in Renfrewshire, Scotland. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM12808.
Back O' Hill Farm, cup marked stone 235m WNW of is a Scheduled Ancient Monument, legally protected by Historic Environment Scotland — the body responsible for designating and safeguarding heritage sites in Scotland. The official designation reference is SM12808.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Castle Hill, motte, Bridge of Weir (2.3 km), Ranfurly Castle, Bridge of Weir (2.4 km), Castle Hill, enclosure 260m SE of East Barnaigh (4.6 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 14 strands of Back O' Hill Farm, cup marked stone 235m WNW of's history, each drawn from the record and mapped to the exact spot:
Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.
Back O' Hill Farm, cup marked stone 235m WNW of stands on Strathclyde Group, bedrock that formed in the Visean. The rock here is sedimentary rock cycles, strathclyde group type.