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Three prehistoric carved rocks on Goldsborough Rigg, Cotherstone Moor, 860m SSE Pitcher House is an ancient monument comprising three rock outcrops bearing carved cup-and-ring marks dating to the Bronze Age. The carvings, which consist of circular depressions surrounded by concentric rings pecked into the stone surface, are characteristic of rock art produced during the second millennium BCE in northern Britain. Located on the open moorland of Cotherstone Moor in County Durham, these rocks represent a significant example of prehistoric ritual or territorial marking practised by Bronze Age communities in the upland areas of northern England. The precise function of such cup-and-ring marks remains debated among scholars, though they are widely interpreted as having held symbolic, ceremonial, or astronomical significance for the societies that created them.
Three prehistoric carved rocks on Goldsborough Rigg, Cotherstone Moor, 860m SSE Pitcher House is a scheduled monument protected by Historic England under reference 1016598. View the official record →
Three prehistoric carved rocks on Goldsborough Rigg, Cotherstone Moor, 860m SSE Pitcher House is an ancient monument comprising three rock outcrops bearing carved cup-and-ring marks dating to the Bronze Age. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Historic England (NHLE) under reference 1016598.
Three prehistoric carved rocks on Goldsborough Rigg, Cotherstone Moor, 860m SSE Pitcher House is a Scheduled Ancient Monument, legally protected by Historic England (NHLE) — the body responsible for designating and safeguarding heritage sites in England. The official designation reference is 1016598.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Roman signal station 190m north west of Vale House Farm (5 km), Romano-British settlement site to the east and south-east of East Mellwaters farmhouse (5.2 km), Late prehistoric walled settlement 200m south-south-east of East Mellwaters farmhouse (5.4 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 15 strands of Three prehistoric carved rocks on Goldsborough Rigg, Cotherstone Moor, 860m SSE Pitcher House'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.
Three prehistoric carved rocks on Goldsborough Rigg, Cotherstone Moor, 860m SSE Pitcher House stands on Yoredale Group, bedrock that formed in the Bashkirian. The rock here is limestone, sandstone, siltstone and mudstone.