Two crosses with an arrow in between had been scratched in the stone.
“What do you think?” repeated Simione, holding the rock on an angle so the three of them could better see the shapes.
“That’s an arrow,” said Roscoe, as he traced the shape in the middle with his finger.
“And that’s an Iron Cross,” Dan-Dan said with conviction, touching the sketch on the left.
Neither Roscoe nor Simi were able to make much sense out of that particular crude shape until Dan-Dan had identified it. Dan-Dan read the comics, which were lying around the Gray’s bach, their family friends’ beach holiday home where they stayed each year. Most of the comics were the “Commando” series of war stories in black and white, based on World War II, with the British Army versus Nazi Germany, so the Iron Cross was very familiar to him.
“But what’s this shape here?” Simione pointed to the shape on the right side of the cluster. “It looks like a power pole!”
“No idea,” responded Roscoe. “And what does it all mean?”
Dan-Dan shook his head. “Let’s not read too much into it; anyone could’ve done it, just for fun.” He was trying to keep a lid on their expectations and excitement. “Why does it have to have a meaning? – it could be just doodles.”
“No,” said Roscoe emphatically. “I’m betting this was done by Tamehana and it’s important!”