Cup stones in Estonia
95% of the 1750 cup stones in Estonia are located in the northern Estonian four districts of Harju , Järva , Ida-Viru and Lääne-Viru .
North Estonia
Harju County
Rae , located southeast of Tallinn , has over 130 cup stones, Estonian "lohukivi" plur. "lohukivid" one of the richest municipalities in Estonia. The largest numbers were discovered in the villages of Assaku and Lehmja. The Assaku Nõiakivi (Assaku Witch Stone) in Assaku, which was discovered in 1964 by Oskar Raudmets (1914-2003) and placed under protection in 1998, has the largest number of bowls on a stone in Northern Europe with 405 bowls.
In Kuusalu (German Kusal) in the east and in the vicinity there are about 125 stones. In Kuusalu itself, more than 50 stones were placed under protection. Most of the Kuusalu stones, however, were destroyed. The owner of the Kapa farm in Kuusalu reported to Gustav Vilbaste (also Vilberg; 1885–1967) that at the end of the 19th century, out of ignorance, he destroyed almost 70 stones when he cleared his fields from the stones. About 50 stones were found in the neighboring villages of Allika, Kiiu, Sõitme and Vaikla.
Neither the northeast of Kuusalu still in the vicinity of the village Muuksi where more than 80 stone boxes , the largest burial ground of the early Iron Age is in Estonia, or in the vicinity of the village Uuri where both stone and Tarandgräber were discovered Schalensteine were discovered. More than 50 stones were found in Harju-Jaani and around 70 in Kose . The easternmost stones of Kuusalu are in the village of Hirvli . None were found further east. More than 120 stones were found in Keila , west of Tallinn. Most are east of the Keila River . The ten or so stones of Nissi are mainly in the eastern part. No stones have yet been discovered in the west of Harju County.
Rapla County
The southern part of the historical Harju County largely coincides with today's Rapla County . A number of cup stones were found there. The region differs from other North and West Estonian stone areas in that the number of historical graves from the Bronze and Pre-Roman Iron Ages , which are traditionally associated with the stones, is low. The majority of the nearly one hundred cup stones in Rapla are in the northern part around the village of Hagudi. Further south, in the villages of Nadalama and Ohekatku, there is another place with stones. The 70 stones in Hageri were found in the villages of Adila, Hageri, Rabivere and Vilivere. In the vicinity of the villages of Angerja and Pahkla in the eastern part there is a somewhat secluded spot with stones. The more than 50 stones in Juuru are mainly in the northern part around the villages of Lõiuse and Pirgu.
The stone sites of northern Estonia - Harju County on one side and Virumaa and Järva Counties on the other - are separated from each other by a stone-free area of around 20 to 30 km. No archaeological monuments from the Iron Age have been found in this swampy forest area.
Circle of Ida-Viru and Lääne-Viru
Nearly 600 stones, about 35% of the total number of cup stones in Estonia, have been found in the historic Virumaa district. In the western part of the district (today Lääne-Viru ), around 520 stones were discovered. Most of them are in Haljala, Kadrina, Rakvere and Viru-Nigula. There are 220 stones in Viru-Nigula and around 150 in Rakvere. The number of stones in the northern part of Viru-Nigula municipality is the largest in Estonia - more than 40 were found in the village of Kutsala alone. Almost as many were found in the village of Pada . The large number of stones found in the parishes of Rakvere and Viru-Nigula may be due to the systematic search for archaeological finds in the area in the late 1970s and early 1980s.
In the eastern part of Virumaa, today's Ida-Viru , about 80 stones were found. In Lüganuse there are more than 40 stones near the Aa property and in the villages of Erra and Maidla to the south of the property.
Järva County
About 120 stones are known from Järva County, of which more than 70 are in Ambla . More than 30 of the Ambla stones are located in a limited area around the villages of Läste, Pruuna and Rägavere. Several stones were found in the villages of Ambla and Jõgisoo themselves. The Järva-Jaani stones are mainly located in the villages of Allikjärve, Jalgsema, Karinu, Roosna-Alliku and Valasti. A significant place with more than 13 stones in the southern part of Järva is in the village of Koordi . The three southernmost stones of the circle are in Väätsa .
Saaremaa district
The districts Lääne (Estonian Lääne maakond or Läänemaa, "Westland", German Wiek or Wieck) and Saaremaa (German / Swedish Ösel , Danish Øsel ) have 93 stones. No one was found on Hiiumaa , Estonia's second largest island in the Baltic Sea. Almost 60 stones were found on the islands of Saaremaa and Muhu . The number could be higher because no systematic search was carried out there, as in Harju or Lääne-Virumaa, for example. The densest distribution of stones on Saaremaa is in Kihelkonna , where their number is 10. On the small island of Vilsandi , in front of Saaremaa, are the two westernmost cup stones in Estonia. They were discovered in 1974 by Vello Lõugas (1937–1998). In the eastern part of Saaremaa, in Pöide and Valjala , there are a number of stones. Interestingly, no stones have been found in the Paatsa and Võhma area in Mustjala on Saaremaa, known for its large number of archaeological monuments, and in the wide area to the west of the island. For a long time no stone finds have been reported from the Sõrve peninsula in the south, although the area is rich in graves from the Iron Age. In 1995 Vello Lõugas found two stones on the edge of a large rock formation between the villages of Easte and Kaugatuma . One of the stones had only a few bowls, the other more than 60. Only two stones were found on the island of Muhu, one of which was destroyed at the end of the last century.
Kreis Lääne
A total of 30 stones were found in two regions of Lääne County. There are more than 10 stones around the villages of Auaste, Taebla and Uugla in Lääne-Nigula east of Haapsalu . The second group of Lääne stones is in Hanila and Karuse south of Matsalu Bay. More than ten of them are located near the village of Linnuse in Karuse .
From the island Vormsi ( German Worms , Swedish Ormsö , Estonia Swedish Årmse ) no stones are known.
South Estonia
A total of 54 stones have been found in the districts of Viljandi, Võru and Tartu in southern Estonia . Most of them are in the northern part of Tartu and Viljandi counties .
Viljandi County
25 shell stones were found in Viljandi. The area with the most stones is near the villages of Kuiavere and Tääksi in Suure-Jaani , where there are six stones. Another stone is located near the villages of Kuhjavere and Võhma. Four stones were discovered in the village of Aidu, in Paistu . The neighboring villages of Koera (Sultsi) and Muri each have one.
Tartu County
24 stones were found in Tartu County, distributed among the parishes of Äksi, Kambja, Kursi, Laiuse, Nõo, Palamuse, Puhja and Torma.
Võru County
Only four stones are known in Võru County, one of which is in Valgjärve village in Kanepi and the other three are in the immediate vicinity in Viru and Kõrgepalu villages in Rõuge . The Rõuge Stones are the southernmost and southeasternmost cup stones in Estonia.