Cornwall standing stone Men Scryfa set alight

The tip of the stone is scarred by burning

A suspected arson attack on a standing stone thought to be thousands of years old has horrified experts.

Petrol or another flammable liquid is thought to have been poured over the Men Scryfa stone in west Cornwall and set alight last Thursday.

Lichen has been burned at the tip of the 6ft (1.8m) stone which has a Roman inscription.

Earth around the base of the stone has also been dug up, raising concerns that the stone was intended to be toppled.

Digging is shown around the base of the stone

Men Scryfa is a protected scheduled monument, listed as an early Christian memorial stone by Historic England.

The Cornish Ancient Sites Protection Network (CASPN) think it dates back to the Bronze Age more than 3,000 years ago and has a later Latin inscription meaning Royal Raven, son of the famous leader.

James Kitto of the CASPN said: "I am just so shocked and disappointed that anyone would want to do such a thing to one of our precious ancient sites."

The organisation said the attack had been reported to the police.

Matthew Shaw of the Cornwall-based Stone Club said: "It's horrifying to see the top of the stone burned along with the lichen, a delicate eco-system which is common on ancient stones.

"It sounds like someone has been digging around the base of the stone to dislodge it or see more of the inscription.

"It's hard to believe that someone could disrespect the site like this, which is really special and sits in a magical landscape of other ancient monuments such as Lanyon Quoit and Men an Tol."