Shadow on Hindhead Hill and the mystery of the sailor's stone (9 photos + 1 video)
This unusual tombstone holds the legend of the brutal murder of an unknown sailor. 
On the territory of Hindhead Heath and the natural amphitheatre of the Devil's Cauldron in the British parish of Waverley lies a historical tombstone. Few people know about the "Unknown Mariner" - an unnamed seafarer who died in September 1786 in Surrey, at the foot of Hindhead Hill. His killers were punished when they were publicly executed on Gibbet Hill the following year. 
According to legend, in September 1786, a sailor called at the Red Lion Inn in the village of Thursley. He was returning from London to join his ship in Portsmouth. There he met three sailors: James Marshall, Michael Casey and Edward Longegon. The sailor lavished them with drink and food, after which they set off together towards Hindhead Hill. Unfortunately, for no apparent reason, the journey ended in tragedy. The trio murdered the unfortunate man, robbed him and dumped the body in the valley. The criminals were caught when they tried to sell the stolen goods at the Sun Inn in Rake. 
The Hampshire Chronicle newspaper described the brutal crime: the murderers almost cut off the victim's head and threw the unfortunate body into a ravine. Fortunately, local residents accidentally discovered the body, raised the alarm, and soon the criminals were captured in a tavern. Six months later, they were tried in Kingston, and two days after the verdict, on April 7, 1787, they were hanged on a triple gallows near the scene of the crime. 
The unknown sailor was buried in the cemetery in Thursley, and the tombstone was erected at the expense of the villagers. There is an assumption that the deceased was Edward Hardman, born in 1752 in London, but there is no confirmation of this. 
Today the slab serves as a monument to this story. It will be interesting to see it not only because of the literary references (for example, Charles Dickens was inspired by these events), but also because of the ancient intricate carving depicting the murder of a sailor. 
