Natural Occurance Or Old Bricks Inside Rock?

[Overseas]

Found an old tree growing out of or next to this rock.

Inside the rock is an opening...

Inside the opening appears to be a roof made of sandstone in the shape of bread loaves. On the bottom appears to be a barrier made of sandstone bricks.

However, the bricks do not appear modern at all, so I am stuck between man made vs geological occurance.

It does not look like the typical cubed sedimentary rocks or sandstone I am used to seeing in this area.

So, blocked off entrance to a chamber, natural occurance, or what do you think?

 

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[diggummup]

Interesting. I know what I'd do, were it me. So where's my pick and shovel at? A couple of those "bricks" look questionable enough to me for a little further investigation. The way they appear stacked doesn't look natural (to me) either. Then again I'm no geologist, so it could be all natural for all I know..

 

[P.ALLEN]

Photo on the left is natural. Photo on the right: It looks suspicious. I've seen sandstone "block and brick" like that before, but something about that doesn't sit right. I would check it out.

 

[Overseas]

VERY CURIOUS is what you are keeping me...lol.

I have been thinking about getting a borescope, because if this is only from nature I do not want to destroy it.

Lots of eroded sandstone in the area, but nothing stacked like this. Thanks for your thoughts so far!

 

[diggummup]

Second photo is a close up of the void on the right side of the first photo. I see the tree/roots have already split the main rock. Making it easier to excavate perhaps. Why are you worried about "destroying" it if it's natural? Or is the actual location of it a problem? Any good Plumber will have a borescope, if you're friends with one like me, it may save you a little money. They do have some pretty cheap ones nowadays, though I don't know how good a quality they are.

 

[Overseas]

Yes, the 2nd photo is a closeup of the void. I actually don't have a pick axe, so the borescope might be cheaper.

Like you said though the quality is questionable.

I am overseas and do not know a lot of people that could help.

Land is "public", so I plan to avoid damaging anything beyond the normal moving things out of the way if they are natural.

 

[jewelerguy]

looks interesting. keep us informed and post pictures of the treasure chest when you find it.

 

[Beshires1]

Be ready to "Get your Hat" in case its a rattlesnake den!

 

[Overseas]

Fortunately no rattlesnake threat here...lol

 

[WaterScoop]

I always use the Socratic method by asking more questions when trying to solve a mystery?

Here are some I would ask:

How does this rock compare with other rock in the area?
Is this the only rock that looks like this?
Is that some sort of paint on the rocks in the pictures? If YES then that screams man made.
What is the length of the larger rectangular blocks?
Are those similar in size with bricks or building blocks in the area historically?
Were there any civilizations in the area before that built castles, etc?

That’s what I would want to know

 

[Back-of-the-boat]

It looks like at one time it could have been a natural spring that ran from the opening, the rocks look to have had water running over them.

 

[diggummup]

It looks like at one time it could have been a natural spring that ran from the opening, the rocks look to have had water running over them.

That looks like natural seepage to me.

 

[huntsman53]

Interesting. I know what I'd do, were it me. So where's my pick and shovel at? A couple of those "bricks" look questionable enough to me for a little further investigation. The way they appear stacked doesn't look natural (to me) either. Then again I'm no geologist, so it could be all natural for all I know..

I agree and I would be investigating the location fully!

 

[Overseas]

Interesting, I never thought of seepage from a natural spring. I am glad I asked.

I do know there were some sandstone builders in the area, Romans, unknown people who built tributes to Greek deities, and laughingly some "people" with abilities to move a monolith.

 

[diggummup]

I meant groundwater runoff seepage versus seepage from an underground spring.

 

[Back-of-the-boat]

Interesting, I never thought of seepage from a natural spring. I am glad I asked.

I do know there were some sandstone builders in the area, Romans, unknown people who built tributes to Greek deities, and laughingly some "people" with abilities to move a monolith.

I am not saying with 100% positive proof that is all it ever was, as the Romans had figured out how to have running water in the homes via an aqueduct system and sewers so your find could be the end of one such project. I like the idea of the borescope to explore further, it could be something not discovered and a piece of history lost and you found it or it could be nothing just natural .But nothing ventured is nothing gained so I would move forward and explore it, until you do you will always wonder.Just be safe in your exploration and give us updates.

 

[WaterScoop]

Dig deeper into the history of the area. Ask questions as mentioned before. Go to your local library and ask about local history and see what they have. Romans and aqueducts are like bread and butter.

Good luck and keep us posted of your progress.

Cheers

 

[Overseas]

...I like the idea of the borescope to explore further, it could be something not discovered and a piece of history lost and you found it or it could be nothing just natural .But nothing ventured is nothing gained so I would move forward and explore it

Borescope ordered and should arrive this week. Instead of a small length handheld unit I opted for one several yards long, just to see where this rabbit hole might end up...lol.

 

[Overseas]

Borescope arrived today. I tested it out, and I can even upload pictures with it directly from my phone to TN. I can't wait until the weekend.