Kevin Nosferatu: The Plague Stone

On an unseasonably hot day I went for a walk through the centre of York and over to the Knavesmire, which was the site of the ‘York Tyburn’ where public executions used to take place, and for those who like to take a punt on the horses, is also where York racecourse is. From there, sweating in the heat of the mid-afternoon sun like the fat man I am, I crossed over Tadcaster Road and into Little Hob Moor where I stopped under the shade of some trees to cool down and for a drink of lukewarm water from my water bottle. While there I spotted what I’d come to see – The Hob Stone and the Plague Stone.

The Hob Stone and the Plague Stone

These two oddities sit next to each other just off the main path through the park and near to a gate that leads into someone’s rather well kept back garden.

The Hob Stone

The Hob Stone is a coffin lid, probably from the early 14^th Century, that has been set in the ground in an upright position. Carved on it is the effigy of a knight with the shield of arms of the De Roos family. This is now so weathered that it just looks like a lumpy, bumpy stone with some holes in it. On the back of the Hob Stone was an inscription, which is now so worn that it is illegible, however it was recorded as reading –

‘This Image Long Hob’s name has bore,

who was a knight in time of yore

and gave this common to ye poor.’

Sitting next to the Hob Stone is a flat stone with a basin cut into it and this is known as the Plague Stone. It dates from 1604 when York was hit by a major outbreak of the plague which killed almost a third of the population of the city. During this time the poor of the city, who had contracted the plague, were housed in temporary encampments on Hob Moor. To pay for food and goods they would place their money in the basin of stones such as this, which were filled with vinegar to disinfect the coins. The 17^th Century equivalent of paying for something using contactless payment…like we’re all doing now because of the Covid.

A picture showing the Plague Stone, which is a stone with a basin carved into it, at the side of the Hob Stone. Photo by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.

The Plague Stone at the side of the Hob Stone

Before continuing my stroll in the head bursting heat, through Hob Moor and back round into the city centre, I left the Skulferatu that accompanied me on my walk in a hole in the back of the Hob Stone.