The 7stanes sites:
The Mystery of the Seven Stanes
An unusual discovery...
When Forestry Commission Scotland were building mountain bike trails at the 7stanes centres in the forests of the south of Scotland, seven large ‘stanes’ were discovered. These were no ordinary stanes - they all had mysterious inscriptions carved into them.
To shed some light on these objects and their carvings, a prominent archaeologist, Professor Ralph Deeson, set out to cast his insightful eye over the puzzle that became known as The Mystery of the Seven Stanes on the 7stanes. (Prof Deeson has written a full account of his investigation - see below).
Complete the puzzle - solve the mystery
With the help of the Prof Deeson's notes below, you can undertake your own journey of discovery across all the 7stanes. By collecting the inscriptions on each of the seven stanes, you can complete the puzzle that’s printed in the leaflet. Please note the competition referred to in the leaflet is now closed.
- Explanation of the mystery and how to complete the puzzle (PDF 73k)
- Form for completing the puzzle (PDF 170k)
- Glentrool - The Giant Axe Head Stane (PDF 872k)
- Kirroughtree - The Gem Stane (PDF 611k)
- Dalbeattie - The Heart Cleft Stane (PDF 226k)
- Mabie - The Ghost Stane (PDF 336k)
- Ae - the Talking Head Stane (PDF 392k)
- Glentress & Innerleithen - The Meteorite Stane (PDF 317k)
- Newcastleton - the Border Stane (PDF 161k)
You can also pick up a 'mystery of the 7stanes' leaflet from the 7stanes centres at Glentress, Mabie, Ae, Glentrool and Kirroughtree.
- If you’d like to find out more, you can read Professor Deeson’s full account of the Mystery of the Seven Stanes (PDF 3Mb).
Good luck on your quest to solve The Mystery of the Seven Stanes on the 7stanes, and ride safely.
