The rock discovered in Coventry.
Senior washed it and noted that it had a series of parallel lines carved into the stone.
…It caught my eye as I was clearing an overgrown part of the garden, Seniordeclared.
The rock discovered in Coventry. (Photo:Herbert Art Gallery and Museum)
At first, I thought it was some kind of calendar.
Finding out later it was an ogham stone and over 1,600 years old was incredible.
Its inscribed ogham markings were likely created between 400 and 500 CE, during the very early medieval period.
Graham Senior with the stone he discovered. (Photo:Herbert Art Gallery and Museum)
This was also the early period of this system of writing.
Ogham, or the Celtic tree alphabet, is the earliest example of an Irish language writing system.
However, it is likely thatsticks and other materialslost to time may have been used.
A stone with ogham markings in Kerry, Ireland. (Photo: Jaqian viaWikimedia Commons,CC BY-SA 3.0 DEED)
Eventually, Latin letters were introduced, and writing shifted to this new alphabet.
Many extant examples are statements of people’s names.
Examples have been discovered in Ireland, Wales, Scotland, and the Isle of Man.
The new discovery in central England is, therefore, unusual.
The stone’s inscription is believed to be a person’s name and home location.
However, why it was created and carried to Coventry is a mystery.
A traveler from Ireland may have brought it to the landlocked county of Coventry via the River Stowe.
Perhaps the traveler was on a pilgrimage to a monastery.
Each find like this helps in filling in our jigsaw puzzle and gives us a bit more information.
Graham Senior with the stone he discovered.
A stone with ogham markings in Kerry, Ireland.
