Cup-marked stones

Cup-marked or offering stones are low stones in the original location, with gouged cup-like depressions on the surface. Stones of this kind have been linked with the Iron Age custom of ancestor worship and fertility cults. Information from later times tells that people took offerings of grain and milk to stones of this kind to ensure good crops and the well-being of livestock. In Finland cup-marked or offering stones are generally associated with the introduction of farming, but it is difficult to estimate the precise age of the stones, which are usually situated near burial sites or fields. The original function of these stones presumably involved fertility and slaughtering rites along with the commemoration of the dead. Some of them may still have been in use in the late 19th century, for example for curing illnesses. Cup-marked stones can easily be recognized by their round cup-like depressions which are between 5 and 8 cm in diameter and from 1 to 5 cm deep. Some stones have only a few cup marks while others may contain several dozen. There are three surviving offering stones in the near vicinity of Rapola. One is near the cemetery of Hirvikallio while the other two are along the road to Sääksmäki Church and in a field belonging to Voipaala Manor respectively.      Offering stone at Hirvikallio. Photo: Heidi Toivanen.