Lifting stone

Lifting stones are common throughout northern Europe, particularly Scotland, Wales, Iceland (where they are referred to as steintökin), Scandinavia and North West England in the area that was once inhabited by the Welsh, now modern day Cumbria. They were usually heavy local stones, without any modification, with the challenge being to lift such a stone, proving your strength. Some of the stones are in fact so heavy that there has been no authenticated lift in modern times, only legend. Recently, lifting stones have often been incorporated into the World's Strongest Man competitions, using various cast, found, or established challenge stones such as the Husefell Stone. They also do a stylized version of an event derived from an ancient contest, in which men would see who could load the heaviest stone onto a stone wall, derived from building such a wall, where they are known as Atlas Stones.

In Iceland, lifting stones were categorised into the

They were traditionally used to qualify men for work on fishing boats, with the hálfdrættingur being the minimum weight a man would have to lift onto a ledge at hip-height to qualify. One such set of stones can be found on the beach of Djúpalónssandur at the foot of Snæfellsjökull. One of the most famous Icelandic stones is the Husafell Stone which weighs 190 kg (418 lb).

Every settlement in the Faroe Islands used to have its local lifting stone, called a hav, derived from the verb hevja which means 'to lift'. Visiting men would be challenged by the locals to show off their strength.

Clach cuid fir, Gaelic for "manhood stones", originate from Scotland. Manhood stones were used for centuries as tests of strength in Scotland. Typically, a young man was welcomed into manhood when he was able to lift his clan's testing stone to waist height. There are many examples in Scotland including:

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