 The western face of the Rudston Monolith 
 
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The Rudston
monolith is the largest standing stone in Britain, standing nearly 8
metres high and weighing a massive 26 tons. This giant block of gritstone
was quarried 10 miles away at Cayton Bay, perhaps sometime before 2000BC.
The churchyard it stands in is of course some 3000 years younger although
the Christianisation of this raised site probably took place much earlier.
The top of the stone has been weathered and eroded into a fluted peak
similar to the stones of the Devil's
Arrows, and a lead cap has been added to try to preserve it,
an ironic touch, as it was here long before the church, and will probably
remain long after the church has gone. In the corner of the churchyard
is a much smaller standing stone and also the remains of a double cist
that was removed from a nearby barrow on Rudston
Beacon by the antiquarian Canon Greenwell in the late 19th century.
The monolith stands close to the Gypsey Race, an occasional stream that
runs along the floor of the Great Wold Valley from close to Duggleby
Howe in the east, past Ba'l Hill
and Willie Howe before turning
south past the Argham Henge
and Cursus down to Rudston itself where
it bends sharply and heads eastwards to the sea at Bridlington. The
name 'Bridlington' itself is probably derived from the pre-Roman goddess
of Bridget (or Brid) The whole of the Gypsey Race landscape was obviously
important in prehistoric times and has a rich selection of sites, most
of which have been destroyed or badly damaged by ploughing, including
many round
barrows, several long
barrows, four cursuses
and at least one
henge. It continued to retain its importance into the historic period
- a major Roman villa was discovered near to Rudston. *See Gypsey Race map for an overview of the monuments in the area.* Glossary Items: Neolithic, Bronze Age. |
