So I found this small rock with some unusual scratches on it. I don't know of any natural process that could have created the markings. Not only are the scratched lines odd, they're also old. You can see the effects of weathering when viewed with a magnifying glass. Just to be on the safe side, I also ran this buy a couple of guys who have a masters in geology and confirmed my observations. Anyone who has any idea as to if it is a something or a nothing would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks!
Jeffery Kretchmer

Could it be marks made from glacial activity ?

Normally yes, however glacial dragging don't create x like formations... They normally would create lines that are all in one director. The back side could.... but is unlikely due to the multiple directions that the line groupings form, nonetheless possible. It really is the other side, not at all typical to glacial scratching.

Could be glaciation or plow scars or a combination of the two, but I don't think in is Man altered. This could be a case for Roger!

When you see glacial scratching that is highly direction, it is usually on a piece of bedrock or a large immovable boulder that the glacier has passed over. If you see it on a cobble and it’s on one surface only then that’s normally a piece that has subsequently broken away from the bedrock. On a small stone that has been dragged along below the glacier as rubble, the scratching will frequently be multidirectional and on multiple surfaces. “Cris-crossing” of the scars is not at all unusual in such circumstances and these stones also frequently exhibit “pseudo-faceting” – especially around the edges:


Glacial Scratching & pseudo-faceted edges on cobble from W Pennsylvania [pic by Callan Bentley]

I think the guys are right. That does look like glacial scarring arising from rubble being carried along at the interface between the base of the glacier and the bedrock it passed over. It’s pretty deep, but sometimes the smaller the stone, the more scarred it gets and post-glacial weathering can increase the depth. As Ray says, there might be some additional plow-scarring too.

Cool! Thanks everyone for the help! I live in Evanston just north of Chicago along the lake. I've seen tons of rocks with glacial scratching, however never something like this, multi directional and densely marked. This is why the geology students thought that it might be hand made markings. At the same time though it doesn't look like what I would normally look for in a pattern or picture. The backside looks a lot more like what I would expect for glacial dragging. I do have to say that while I don't think it was man made, it's odd that the characteristics of the front vs. the back are so different, one uniformly scratched while the other side should be so oddly marked in multiple directions. Both sides do however share a lot of markings. Regardless as to the specifics of how this could happen, that's for helping me solve this rocks mystery!
Sincerely,
Jeff