By Paige Freshwater

Copyright glasgowlive

When setting off on a countryside walk, you’d anticipate breathtaking scenery, local wildlife, and the peaceful quiet of the countryside. Yet one explorer got considerably more than they bargained for after discovering mysterious symbols etched into stone whilst wandering through the Scottish Borders.

Stunned by what they’d found, they shared on Reddit: “I found this carving on a rock in a country estate on the Scottish Border. It shows the Roman numerals XVIII, two circles, one has a plus symbol in it and one has a minus symbol. From what I can tell the other characters are an anchor, a snake and a diamond shape. I used a stick to remove the moss and there doesn’t appear to be any additional carving inside the diamond shape.

“The picture shows the correct orientation of the carving and the rock was about 18 inches tall. Found on the floor of a wooded area, next to a river. Any ideas?”.

While fellow Redditors shared their intrigue at the discovery, others encouraged them to reach out to local heritage organisations for additional information.

One user commented: “I wish I lived in a country where you could go for a walk and discover cool ancient s***.”

Another person recommended: “Contact a local historical society. Might be that you discovered something important.”

A third individual noted: “It’s almost certainly a marker of some sort, probably 19th century or later.

“You say it’s on an estate, so it’s probably something to do with estate lands, so more likely a border or location marker than a way marker.

“The fact that it says 8 suggests it’s one of at least 8 similar stones, so id be asking someone who knows something about the estate.”

Another user chimed in: “It is relatively fresh. If it was Roman or Pictish out in that weather it would be a lot more weathered.

“The curve of the snake on the left looks almost new. You can see the smooth stone inside the groove.”

The Rock Art Project, which examines enigmatic markings on stones throughout the region, revealed that approximately 5,000 years ago, inhabitants of Scotland carved symbols into surfaces across the countryside for different purposes.

Their statement reads: “We call these prehistoric carvings ‘rock art’ and, if we look carefully, we can still see traces of them today.

“Thousands of prehistoric carvings are known in Scotland, and there may be many more waiting to be discovered.

“They were clearly important to the people that created them, but we know little about how they were used, or what purpose they served.”

The initiative has been cataloguing uncovered rock art on their website alongside geographical locations and descriptions of the symbols.

They further added: “Rock art is one of the most fascinating and mysterious aspects of our past.

“Rock art refers to images, symbols, and marks that have been painted or engraved onto natural rock surfaces.

“People have been creating rock art across the world for over 40,000 years. We find it deep within caves, in rock shelters, and on outcrops and boulders in the open landscape.”