Brian John announces the discovery of an "an erratic cobble found near the West Kennet burial mound...The find is a cobble or stone, dark grey or black in colour, 700 g in weight, easy to fit in the palm of a hand. Max length 11 cm, max width 8 cm. Rough wedge or bullet shape. First impression is that it is very heavy for its size. Heavily abraded with sub-angular edges. It reminds me of the Newall Boulder, but it is much smaller. There are four major facets and several smaller ones. Pointed bottom end, and rather rough flattish top surface. "
Is this proof of erratics on the Chalk downs of Wiltshire?
I walked up the my nearest track onto the downs, and lo, there was a similar cobble in the gateway.
Click to enlarge
The same dark limestone, it fizzes with acid.
The find wasn't a surprise to me, nearly every track and gateway has them, and from where they were used in farmyards they were spread over every field with the muck. (Whisper it quietly but I even found them on the Cholderton Estate.)
They are the ubiquitous Mendip Limestone hardcore used on the farms of Wiltshire to make up tracks, gateways and yards since Victorian times.
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