National Trust, Skell Valley Project. 3D fly-through of Prehistoric Cup-Marked Boulder, Aldfield

As part of the Skell Valley archaeological project, the Archaeological Practice Ltd has been working with the National Trust and a team of volunteers, based at Fountains Abbey, near Ripon in North Yorkshire. We recorded and surveyed this mysterious boulder near the village of Aldfield. The boulder rests against an enormous oak tree in the middle of a field, perhaps a convenient place for field clearance, but the 'stone' is recorded in the same position on early maps and sits at the centre of a raised mound, possibly a prehistoric monument. Over 35 cup-marks have been incised upon the surface of the boulder, indicating a style of rock art dating to the Neolithic period, but on such 'portable stones' rock art was often copied or reused in burial contexts during the Bronze Age. A curious feature noted is the roughly squared socket at what is now the front of the boulder. One possible interpretation put forward is that this housed an early Christian cross shaft, perhaps appropriating what was thought of as a relic to paganism. Whilst this opinion is feasible, others have pointed to the fact that the socket is rather shallow to accommodate a large timber upright and that a deep notch has been chiselled out of the bottom left corner, perhaps allowing drainage for reasons unknown. Whatever its use, this boulder has certainly had an interesting life and for now must remain an enigma. This video fly-through of the boulder was produced by stitching together 35 photographs from varying angles and used specialist software to create a 3D model. Enjoy!