Caratacus Stone
The Caratacus Stone is located in Exmoor in the county of Somerset ( England ) just east of the "Spire Cross" road junction, 370 m high near the summit of Winsford Hill. This stone, which bears the name of Caratacus (the Latin form of Caradoc), is hardly known even to antiquaries . Thomas Acland erected a massive protective structure over the stone to protect the monolith from erosion. It protrudes more than 0.9 m from the ground. On its east side (probably in the 4th century) two words have been carved in two lines. Reading downwards it says:
- CARATACI
- NEPVS
"Nephew of Caradoc" The stone apparently commemorates a relative of the British leader who fiercely resisted the Roman invasion but was defeated in the Battle of the Medway.
The menhir ( English Standing Stone ) is mentioned in records from the years 1219 and 1279, but the origin and history of the stone are disputed. Some consider it to be prehistoric, others to be Romano-British or from the Dark Ages . The writing is certainly of Roman origin, but the historian SH Burton considers the stone to be older.
Also on Winsford Hill are the Wambarrows, three circular burial mounds (a fourth to the southeast) north of the B3223 (road). A road connects the Caratacus Stone with the bridge of Tarr Steps in the valley of the Exe.
Legend
The old stone is said to be a place where treasure is buried. There is also an old legend that "ghostly teams go towards the stone at midnight" - but this probably refers to the old junction not far away.
literature
- John Lloyd Warden Page: An Exploration of Exmoor and the Hill Country of West Somerset with notes on its archeology . Seeley & Co., London 1890, (Limited edition of 250 copies).
Web links
Coordinates: 51 ° 5 ′ 25.9 " N , 3 ° 35 ′ 12.5" W.