ONCE across the smallest and now unusable drawbridge in the world, you enter God's Country, as some describe the island of Somerset.

As if in reinforcement of that notion, as the land rises from The Scaur to the eminence that is straddled by a fort of the 1870s, the earthly voyager is greeted by religious graffiti writ large in white letters on the cliff face.

The scene recently attracted much chatter on a local talk show, with many theories put forward about its origins. Despite its heavenly sentiments, no one suggested that ET or friends had created the original inscription and most regarded it as part of Bermuda's earthly heritage.

Last year, the second inscription was repainted, possibly in contravention to Caesar's law against graffiti in public places. That act inspired a copycat, who scrawled a new slogan below it, probably in breach of the law.

Unknown to most, this last was the third piece of graffiti to have been painted at Scaur Hill and most speak of the second as if it were the first. Few are clear as to the date and creator of the first or the second writings, but the third is dated to 2004, inscriber unknown.

The archaeology of the scene shows that the first inscription extended further to the north than the second. It is mostly faded away and was truncated by a driveway through the cliff. The first and second writings are from the Bible, King James Version.

They state: There is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved, but the Name of Jesus. The first part is an excerpt from Acts 4.12, with "but the Name of Jesus" added on.

As can be seen from the photograph on which I have overprinted the surviving letters of the first inscription, the "me" of Name and the words "of Jesus" have been destroyed by the driveway.

That destruction may be the reason why the inscription was repainted further towards Somerset Bridge at some unknown date. The original was written in italics, while the second is in a Roman typeface.

The 2004 addition reads: "He Name Yeshua son of YHWH." The last letters stand for Yahweh or God the Father. A religious person writes: "Thus we are justified in saying that YAHWEH and YAHSHUA (Jesus) are, to all intents and purposes, indistinguishable as far as their common Name is concerned. Yahweh is the Father-and Yahweh is the Son."

The Scaur Hill writings reflect a controversy of religious thought, as some claim Yahshua is the true name of Jesus and thus Jesus should not be used.

Those religious comments aside, we return to the earthly question of who painted the first edition of the Scaur Hill inscriptions. The Bermuda National Trust's outstanding book on the architecture of Sandys Parish says that the father of Samuel George Brown (who until 1932 owned the home near The Scaur now called Watch House) painted the slogan in gratitude for a good harvest.

James, the father, lived at Church Hill further north in Somerset and died in 1906, aged about 77. So if James was the first graffiti artist at Scaur Hill, the original painting must have been executed before 1906.

This would fit with part of it being destroyed by the driveway probably cut out in the 1930s. Another factor that may help to date the work was the construction of Scaur Hill Fort in the 1870s, as it may be likely the present level of the road at the top of the hill was created by the military.

It is possible that the original road passed over the hill at a higher grade, which was reduced into the present cutting to accommodate the ditch of the fort, which crossed the road just north of the position of the inscriptions.

A long lost wooden bridge would have allowed passage for the road over the ditch. If the military created the cutting and cliff face, the first painting would have to have been made after the mid-1870s and before 1906.

The second inscription is therefore possibly dated after the 1930s, depending on the construction of the house roadway that cut through part of the original. It is the second version that has become part of local lore and heritage, but it likely came after the death of Farmer Brown by several decades. While not the original, it is of significant antiquity to stand in for James Brown's original artistry. It can thus be "grandfathered" as earthly heritage, beyond the reach of the modern laws against graffiti, though not necessarily protected by legislation for antiquities.

The same cannot be said of the third inscription, which is no different than the civilian graffiti that is unfortunately sprouting up all over the island.

Such graffiti detracts from the beauty of Bermuda and degrades its heritage and tourism assets.

The Bible says: "Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's; and unto God the things that are God's" (Matt. 22:21). Caesar would probably prefer that his earthly walls be not rendered with thoughts more appropriate for private heavenly communication.

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Dr. Edward Harris, MBE, JP, FSA, Bermudian, is the Executive Director of the Bermuda Maritime Museum. The views expressed here are his opinion and not necessarily those of the trustees or staff of the Museum. Comments can be sent to drharrislogic.bm, to PO Box MA 133, Sandys MABX, or by telephone at 734-1298.