The Strange Petroglyphs of Dighton Rock

On the shores of Taunton River at Berkley, Massachusetts, stands a small museum with a single but massive exhibit—a 40-ton rock that was fished out of the riverbed and installed here in 1963—the famous Dighton Rock named after the former town of Dighton where it was found. The rock’s fame lies in the indecipherable inscriptions carved on its face that has puzzled scholars since the 17th century. The petroglyphs, primarily made up of straight lines and geometric shapes, are accompanied by very basic drawings of people along with writing that are known. It almost looks like random doodles made by people who had nothing better to do, but people are convinced they hide a secret message. The Dighton Rock in 1893. The Dighton Rock is approximately 5 feet high, 9.5 feet wide, and 11 feet long. The surface with the inscriptions is inclined and once faced the sea where it could have been seen by any approaching boat or ship. Through the centuries, therefore, it was speculated that the carvings was a message left by visitors to the coast, intended to catch the eye of subsequent maritime explorers passing that way. One of the first mentions of the Dighton Rock can be found in 1680 when the English colonist Rev. John Danforth made a drawing of the petroglyphs, which has been preserved in the British Museum. However, Danforth’s drawing conflicts with other reports on the rock at a similar time. In 1690 Rev. Cotton Mather described the rock in his book The Wonderful Works of God Commemorated : Among the other Curiosities of New-England, one is that of a mighty Rock, on a perpendicular side whereof by a River, which at High Tide covers part of it, there are very deeply Engraved, no man alive knows How or When about half a score Lines, near Ten Foot Long, and a foot and half broad, filled with strange Characters: which would suggest as odd Thoughts about them that were here before us, as there are odd Shapes in that Elaborate Monument.