The Devil's Ring and Finger

Listed on the National Heritage List for England. Search over 400,000 listed places

Overview

Heritage Category:: Scheduled Monument
List Entry Number:: 1003495
Date first listed:: 19-Nov-1928

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Official list entry

Heritage Category:: Scheduled Monument
List Entry Number:: 1003495
Date first listed:: 19-Nov-1928

Location

The building or site itself may lie within the boundary of more than one authority.

County:: Staffordshire
District:: Newcastle-under-Lyme (District Authority)
Parish:: Loggerheads
National Grid Reference:: SJ 70726 37781

Summary

Two stones standing 200m east of Norton Forge Farm known as The Devil’s Ring and Finger.

Reasons for Designation

Despite being removed from their original positions, the two stones standing 200m east of Norton Forge Farm known as The Devil’s Ring and Finger represent an evocative reminder of Neolithic society and ritual. In particular, the holed stone represents a very rare survival with only a handful of similar stones currently known in England. Both stones were likely to have been upstanding as part of an arrangement of stones such as a stone alignment, circle, or chambered tomb within the nearby vicinity. Monuments containing holed stones are known from the Neolithic period but a Bronze Age date is also possible.

History

See Details.

Details

This record was the subject of a minor enhancement on 2 June 2015. The record has been generated from an "old county number" (OCN) scheduling record. These are monuments that were not reviewed under the Monuments Protection Programme and are some of our oldest designation records.

The monument includes two stones to the south-east of Norton in Hales situated on a gentle slope running down to the River Tern. The stones stand adjacent to each other at the edge of a field boundary. The northern stone is grooved and measures 1.8m high and 1m by 0.6m wide. The southern stone is holed and measures 1.5m high and 1.9m by 0.5m wide. The aperture in the holed stone is 0.45m in diameter and large enough for a person to pass through. There is no evidence to confirm they are in their original position and their leaning nature against a field boundary wall indicates they have been moved. They are likely to be from a chambered tomb or stone setting. There are currently no known associated monuments of the Neolithic and Bronze Age periods within the vicinity, however, the site of a possible Bronze Age disc barrow lies 350m to the south-west.

Legacy

The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.

Legacy System number:: ST 6
Legacy System:: RSM - OCN

Sources

Other
PastScape 74273 and 74301.

Legal

This monument is scheduled under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979 as amended as it appears to the Secretary of State to be of national importance. This entry is a copy, the original is held by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.