Case file · Folklore / legend
The Ikom monoliths
In 1905 the colonial officer Charles Partridge published the carved basalt stones of the Bakor area near Ikom, Cross River State: about 300 standing stones with faces, navels and geometric patterns.
1905 CE · 6.05, 8.75 · status: account
The account
Their age is unknown (estimates range widely) and their meaning is debated; local communities treat them as ancestor figures. They are on UNESCO's tentative list and are threatened by neglect. The plotted point is approximate.
The sceptical view
Some popular sites claim the patterns are a lost script or star map; there is no evidence for this.