Jāņandreji Cup-Marked Stone

Description

One of the richest, in terms of cup marks, ancient cult stones in Northern Kurzeme. It is interesting also because it is one of the most recently discovered cup-marked stones of this type in the surroundings of Talsi. The size of the stone: length of 1.15 m, width of 1.05 m, height of 0.5 m, circumference of 3.52 m. Gray interleaved gneiss. On the surface of the stone of not such a big size, before thousands of years, 38 cup marks were carved.

Narrative

The cup-marked stone is attributed to the Bronze Age or Iron Age. As regards reasons for carving the cup marks (hollows), the historians have made more than 30 different assumptions, out of which the most reliable ones are related to cult rituals held at such stones. One of the most interesting cult stones of such type in Kurzeme, because there are quite a lot of cup marks, they are very different as to their form, some had even been merged together. This is the first cup-marked stone in Latvia where the merged marks were discovered, about the meaning of which the scientists have not yet come to understand.

Location

Coordinates: 57.26463, 22.61856

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Comments

The cup-marked stone was discovered in 2007 (M. Broža). Located in a private yard, object’s attendance is bothering the inhabitants.

Photo, video

Archive of the “Cult Identity” project