The Heysham Labyrinth

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such as the cup-and-ring and cup-and-ring with groove motifs. Although these two motif types occur with other motifs such as concentric circles and cupules and are largely confined to northern Britain, labyrinths are not occurring with other contemporary motifs. As far as the author is aware, only three probable examples exist in Britain and Ireland that are considered to be pre-Roman; their ‘dating’ is based on labyrinths elsewhere in NW Europe (Hadingham 1974; J. Saward 2002; A. Saward 2003). One of these labyrinths (also referred to as the ‘Game of Troy’ motifs in the 18th century; Hadingham 1974: 104) was found at Hollywood, Co. Wicklow, in 1908 and is similar to the Heysham example. This particular petroglyph is considered to be pre-Christian, possibly dating to the Bronze Age and similar in design to others found in pre-Historic Europe. The Heysham labyrinth (Grid Ref. SD 40788 61625), located in the northern English county of Lancashire was discovered in 1995 by Clive Dainty, photographer and journalist for the Morecambe Visitor; the discovery was duly reported in the Morecambe Visitor on 13 September 1995 (Withers 1996). This motif appears to be pecked (rather than carved) onto a horizontal sandstone outcrop, approximately 50 m north of Half Moon Bay and some 200 m south of the early medieval monastic site of St Patrick’s Chapel (Fig. 1). Withers (1996: 2–3) concluded that the labyrinth had spiritual qualities and that its origin is probably preHistoric. The sandstone outcrop on which it stands has commanding views across Morecambe Bay as well as the mountains of Cumbria to the north. The labyrinth is also within a (rock art) study area that includes 19th and 20th century textual and representative graffiti (Nash in prep.).

The Heysham labyrinth, Morecambe Bay, northern England By GEORGE NASH In terms of the available pre-Historic rock art repertoire, the labyrinth motif can be considered rare and complex to construct. The origin of this design is not clear, however, it has a number of geometrical qualities that are found in other pre-Historic motifs

Figure 1. The location of the Heysham labyrinth, Morecambe Bay, Lancashire, England.

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Figure 2. An example of a Galician labyrinth E. Anati attributes to the Bronze Age, from Laxe do Pombal, near Pontevedra (after Anati 1968: Fig. 48). The earliest labyrinths are assumed to date to the Bronze Age (Fig. 2), are found within many of the core rock art areas of Europe (e.g. Galicia, NW Spain, and at Naquane in the Valcamonica, northern Italy), and are suggested to have their origins in the eastern Mediterranean, representing some form of maze (Childe 1958). Turf-made and stone-laid labyrinths became a popular motif between the 17th and 20th centuries, were found across most of Britain and had a variety of purposes, many localised and included luring into the centre of labyrinth evil spirits; once there the spirits would be trapped (Harte 1986; Saward 2002). The most recent of these is on the island of St Martins, Isles of Scilly, where a plethora of designs made from discarded rope and large rounded pebbles was constructed by school children in 2000 (Fig. 3). Within the same group of islands, and probably the

Figure 3. The labyrinth complex on St Martin’s, Isles of Scilly, taken in October 2007 (photograph G. H. Nash).

inspiration to the children of St Martins’, is the Troy Town labyrinth, located on the island of St Agnes (Fig. 4). This labyrinth, measuring around 3 m in diameter is constructed from rounded beach stones but was originally made from turf and is believed to date to at least the early 18th century. At this time the term Troy Town (or the Game of Troy) was a common name for mazes in England and many were constructed as fashionable features within the gardens of the landed gentry (Matthews 1922). The origin of the Troy Town maze on St Agnes is unknown but it has been suggested that it was constructed by Amor Clarke, a lighthouse keeper in 1729. However, other sources suggest that Clarke was merely rebuilding an earlier labyrinth. It was controversially rebuilt in 1989 by four dowsers; critics said that a chance to look for any earlier remains of the original turf maze, possibly under the stones, was lost. The left-handed Heysham labyrinth, similar in design to the two others found in Rocky Valley, Tintagel, Cornwall, measures around 16 cm in diameter and is constructed from six or seven pecked concentric rings. A single straight line oriented SSW/NNE forms the access (or entrance) to the labyrinth. Carved onto a horizontal surface of soft crystalline sandstone, this motif is one of a number of petroglyphs located on a small area of exposed headland (Nash in prep.). Along with the labyrinth is an assemblage of mainly textual petroglyphs representing initials and names of individuals who presumably have visited the site. In some instances initials and names are accompanied by dates, the earliest recorded dating to 1896. Both the textual graffiti and the labyrinth sit just above the high-tide margin. However, the platform on which they are pecked is occasionally inundated by exceptional high tides. Many of the petroglyphs located on the lower section of the platform have been eroded and it is possible that graffiti earlier than the late 19th century once existed in this area. Since its discovery the Heysham labyrinth has markedly eroded (and been partly covered by graffiti

Figure 4. The Troy Town labyrinth on St Annes, Isles of Scilly, c. 1875 (Source: Bowley 1964).

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has proposed an early Christian date, the labyrinths being associated with a nearby retreat belonging to St Nectan). The eroded lines of the Heysham labyrinth, alas, offer no indication of primary pecking. Dr George Nash Department of Archaeology and Anthropology University of Bristol 43 Woodlands Road Bristol United Kingdom E-mail: [email protected]

REFERENCES

Figure 5. Night image of the Heysham labyrinth, taken in June 2008 (photograph G. H. Nash). over its southern section; see Fig. 5). The photograph that appeared in the Morecambe Visitor in 1995 shows the labyrinth to be cleanly pecked with clearly defined lines. However, inspection in May 2008 shows the curvilinear pecked lines to be smooth and their edges not clearly defined (Fig. 5). The two labyrinths at Rocky Valley in northern Cornwall (SX 073 893), discovered in 1948, are located some way inland and are carved, possibly using a metal implement onto a vertical rock-face near the ruin of Trewethett Mill. Debate concerning their date and interpretation has been recently discussed by Abigail Seward (2001). Nash has concluded that one of the labyrinths is constructed in two phases; the first phase is pecked whilst the second is carved (2007: 186–8). Seward is of the opinion that the date of these pecked images is still inconclusive, whereas Nash has concluded that one of the labyrinths may date to the Bronze Age or Iron Age. Although no direct dating is available, the proposed age of this labyrinth is tentatively based on the pecking technique and on the style of similar features found elsewhere in Europe. The accelerated rate of denudation suggests that the Heysham image is not pre-Historic but possibly 18th or 19th century in date, probably pecked at the same time as the secondary treatment phase of the eastern Rocky Valley labyrinth. The earliest pecked phase underlying the carved secondary phase may possibly date to the Bronze Age. Hadingham (1974: 99)

Anati, E. 1968. El arte rupestre galaico-portugués. Simposio Internacional de Arte Rupestre-Barcelona 1966, pp. 195–254. Barcelona. Bowley, R. L. 1964. The fortunate islands. Bowley Publications, Reading. Childe, G. V. 1958. The prehistory of Europe. Penguin, London. Hadingham, E. 1974. Ancient carving in Britain: a mystery. Garstone Press, London. Harte, J. 1986. Dorset’s maypoles and mazes. Dorset County Magazine, Vol. 113: 9–20. Matthews, W. H. 1922. Mazes and labyrinths. Longmans Press, London. Nash, G. H. 2007. A scattering of images: the rock-art of southern Britain. In A. Mazel, G. H. Nash and C. Waddington (eds), Art as metaphor: the rock-art of Britain, pp. 186–188. Archaeopress, Oxford. Nash, G. H. in prep. Does graffiti of early 20th century England hold the key to the placing of pre-Historic rock art? Saward, A. 2003. The Rock Valley labyrinths. Caerdroia 32: 21–27. Saward, J. 2002. Magical paths. Mitchell Bearzley. Withers, R. W. 1996. Heysham from earliest times (unpublished document). RAR 25-888