Are The Strange Lawrence Brook Carvings In New Jersey A Cryptic Message?

Jan Bartek – AncientPages.com – How can we tell what old carvings are worthy of further investigation and may contain a secret message? Sometimes, we encounter carvings we cannot decipher, and they turn into a mystery we struggle to solve. Occasionally, we misinterpret symbols that are pointless drawings made on rocks for no reason.

Are The Strange Lawrence Brook Carvings In New Jersey A Cryptic Message?
In 1876, M. Danbury and Elias Suydam carved their initials, mysterious symbols, and a skull and crossbones along the shale outcroppings on the Lawrences Brook, Weston Mill Pond, and the Raritan River. Along with the symbols, the two men also carved the words “Centenial Year” and ”Red Rover”. Red Rover was a pirate novel written by James Fenimore Cooper in 1839. It is not clear why the two men did this. The one thing that can be inferred is that the men were skilled in stone carving and may have been apprentices to local carvers. Source: Mark Nonestied – East Brunswick (Images of America) – Photo credit: Christine Arciszewski

Many strange symbols are carved into the red sandstone along Lawerence Brook off the Raritan River in New Jersey. The carvings are the work of Elias Suydam, age 19, and Henry Monroe Danbury, age 19. In 1876 the two men etched the symbols into a rock for an unknown reason. At first sight, the carvings may appear crude, and even a bit childish, but those who examined them say  Suydam and Danbury knew precisely what they were writing.

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