Vol 5 - Dumfriesshire & Galloway Natural History and Antiquarian ...

146 Transactions.poi'tion on the left. Unfortunately the rock is greatly broken,on the southern side especially, and all the higher portion—onthe left in the plate—very much obliterated. Of the twoupright grooves marked DD I am inclined to be doubtful—theonly fact in favour of their artificiality being that the shorter onedoes not continue beyond the cup. It may, therefore, like thevery distinctly-cut groove T, be considered as a stem of oursupposed tree. Of all the rest of the design, the main stem T,the ground line GG, and the groups of cups and ovoid hollows oneither side of the stem, there can be no doubt on the point ofartificiality.They ai'e perfectly clear cut, deep, and unweathered;and each cup as well as the grooves are full of unusually-distinctand decided tool marks. Indeed, so decided are these that theysuggest the only doubt in the matter—were these cups and groovesnot cut by something harder than the flints of our pre-historicforefathers? There are two very short scratches on the lowerside of the ground line GG, one of which has suggested the notionthat it was once continued and formed the corresponding arm ofa cross. I cannot think that either of these marks has anythingto do with the design at all ; they are much more like marksmade by the teeth of a harrow. On the same line of rock surfacethe following sculptures are found :—A group of concentric ringswith central cup, the largest ring bein^ twenty inches in diameterand the cup one inch. The rings are five in number, and aremuch weather-worn. A little to the north of this is a wonderfullyfresh and deep cup two inches in diameter, having fourrings round it, all very clear ; one of these rings being so muchdeeper than the space next the cup groove £B to make it look likea ridge above the surface of the rock.This is a rather uncommonform. I have records of only two others at all similar; one is onthe Kisf^cover at Bleaton-Hallett, Blairgowrie, and the other ismentioned by Mr Jolly in his paper on "The cup-marked stonesin the neighbourhood of Inverness." Near this remai'kable cupare two plain cups, and numerous small indistinct cups ;and at afew feet away fragments of a different arrangement can be tracedcomposed of sets of one large and two small cups, and of ordinarysingle cups and rings, and also of rings of cups, like those abovedescribed, surrounding a central cup.** While preparing this I hear to-day (14th September, 18S7) of thediscovery of yet more and more peculiar pctroglyphs on the same piece ofrock at High Banks by Mr Horuel and Mr Thompson.