Prehistoric Rock Art refers to marks that have been engraved onto natural rock outcrops and standing stones in the open landscape. Petroglyphs exist all over the world and vary in form and technique. This style featured here, described as Cup & Ring Art is an Atlantic Rock Art tradition.
Prehistoric Cup & Ring Art is mainly found along the European Atlantic seaboard: Scandinavia, Britain, Ireland, France (Brittany), Spain (Galacia) and Portugal, as well the Italian Alps, Greece and Switzerland. It is often located in coastal sites, especially those with deeply penetrating estuaries and is generally found on lower mountain slopes at the heads of river valleys.
Laboriously pecked into the natural rock surface with stone and later bronze tools these carvings are believed to have been first created in the Neolithic period (around 6000-4000 years ago). They continued over a relatively long period through the Early Bronze Age (roughly to 1800 BC).
Archaeologists have suggested that the carvings may have represented astronomical alignments on significant occasions. Whether they were used to communicate political, spiritual or philosophical ideas cannot be definitively understood. Why these carvings were made and what they meant has been lost to the passage of time.
Cup & Ring Art is found in many places around the coast of Ireland but the highest concentrations appear to be in Donegal, especially in the area surrounding Trawbreaga Bay. Doagh Isle alone, with 40 known sites is one of the most important locations of cup-and-ring-art in Ireland. Concentrations can also be found in Co. Louth and the Iveragh Peninsula in Co. Kerry.
We found the articles in the Ulster Journal O Archaeology, Vol.51. 1988 on “Prehistoric Rock Art of Co. Donegal By M.A.M. Van Hoek Parts 1 & 2 very informative on the design details and locations of petroglyphs throughout Donegal. We have derived some of our rock art jewellery designs from the detailed sketches made by Van Hoek in 1986.
Many of the locations noted by Van Hoek have become naturally overgrown and can be very difficult to find. Without the local expertise and guidance from Liam McLaughlin we wouldn’t have been able to find these sites ourselves. Even then without the right lighting conditions, the motifs can be difficult to detect. Pouring water over the carvings helps to emphasize the details but bright sunlight with greater contrast of light and shade is necessary to achieve decent photographs.
We quickly realised that only by viewing these petroglyphs in person could we understand them properly. Lines that may have been mistaken for natural grooves and fissures in the rock on sketches or photos could clearly be seen to be carved with visible tool marks. Fine, tightly concentric rings with large flat bottomed central holes, indicative of bronze tool use can be found beside another style of carving which appears older. This style features smaller deeper cup-shaped marks surrounded by fewer wider concentric rings and looks like the ripples created when a stone is dropped in still water.
“Having now visited the panel on several occasions on which more photos were taken and the motifs closer inspected, of which Liam counted so far 52, we found that different hands were at work. This can be seen when looking at the style used to carve a motif. Some are clearly pecked with each individual, very small tool mark still visible within the motif while others are unmistakably smoothed out by hand and/or time, indicating that motifs on this panel are from different periods and more have been added over time to the composition we find today.This of course raises the question if the people who added new motifs knew the meaning of the older ones which already could be 2000 years old by the time the newest additions were made. Certain motifs barely changed shape but that doesn’t mean necessarily that they still expressed the same concept. Some of the newer additions, like the very intriguing egg packs, may represent newer and unknown ideas to the original artists, like the introduction of metal would have brought, leading to potential changes in the mindset of people, their communities, their way of living as well as how they thought of themselves fitting into this new time in balance and probably agreement with their past.”
One impressive example of Cup & Ring Art in Donegal that is more easily found is the Ardmore Gallán Standing Stone, located near Muff village in Donegal. It stands 2.1 metres tall and 0.9 metres in width and depth and overlooks the river Foyle. Dating from 2,500 BC, it features 40 cup marks, about half of which are encircled by one, two or three rings. As the Ardmore Gallán Stone is located on private land, permission should be asked from the owner before any visit should be attempted.
Around 2003 a stone covered in prehistoric Cup & Ring Art carvings was found on Grianan Hill in Inishowen, Co. Donegal, on a farm just below the summit. Collette Herron made this drawing of the stone at the time.
While a large number of carvings have been destroyed by land reclamation or been eroded away over time, many carvings are still being discovered every year and more are still waiting to be found. Many sites have already been reburied purposely to reduce damage caused naturally by weathering or by vandalism. Care and respect for these ancient relics and for the environment are vital to ensure they survive for future generations to enjoy. Regardless of our understanding, it is fascinating to imagine the lifestyles of those that carved these rocks so many thousands of years ago.
With special thanks to Liam McLaughlin for his comprehensive knowledge of Donegal Rock Art and also to Bettina Linke, Adam Rory Porter, Seán Beattie of the Donegal Historical Society and Dr John Moulden of the Lands of Éogain Heritage Group
