Medieval hut NW of Dendles Wood

Overview

Heritage Category: Scheduled Monument

List Entry Number: 1002526

Date first listed: 30-Mar-1960

Location

The building or site itself may lie within the boundary of more than one authority.

National Park: DARTMOOR

National Grid Reference: SX 61353 62615

Summary

Stone hut circle north west of Dendles Wood, 1150m SSW of Yealm Steps.

Reasons for Designation

Dartmoor is the largest expanse of open moorland in southern Britain and, because of exceptional conditions of preservation, it is also one of the most complete examples of an upland relict landscape in the whole country. The great wealth and diversity of archaeological remains provide direct evidence for human exploitation of the Moor from the early prehistoric period onwards. The well-preserved and often visible relationship between settlement sites, major land boundaries, trackways, ceremonial and funerary monuments as well as later industrial remains, gives significant insights into successive changes in the pattern of land use through time. Stone hut circles and hut settlements were the dwelling places of prehistoric farmers on Dartmoor. They mostly date from the Bronze Age, with the earliest examples on the Moor in this building tradition dating to about 1700 BC. The stone-based round houses consist of low walls or banks enclosing a circular floor area; remains of the turf or thatch roof are not preserved. The huts may occur singly or in small or large groups and may lie in the open or be enclosed by a bank of earth and stone. Although they are common on the Moor, their longevity and their relationship with other monument types provide important information on the diversity of social organisation and farming practices amongst prehistoric communities. They are particularly representative of their period and a substantial proportion of surviving examples are considered worthy of protection.

Despite afforestation the stone hut circle north west of Dendles Wood, 1150m SSW of Yealm Steps, survives comparatively well and forms part of an unenclosed stone hut circle settlement within an area containing a large number of archaeological sites of different type and period. Information relating to the exploitation of this area during the prehistoric period will survive in this building.

Details

This record was the subject of a minor enhancement on 4 November 2015. The record has been generated from an "old county number" (OCN) scheduling record. These are monuments that were not reviewed under the Monuments Protection Programme and are some of our oldest designation records.

The monument includes a stone hut circle situated on a south west facing slope overlooking the valley of Broadall Lake. The stone hut circle survives as a 6.6m diameter internal area surrounded by a double orthostatic wall measuring up to 2m wide with an average height of 0.5m. A north facing gap is unlikely to represent an original entrance.

Further archaeological remains survive within the vicinity of the monument, some are scheduled, but others are not currently protected and these are not included within the scheduling because they have not been formally assessed.

Legacy

The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.

Legacy System number: DV 442

Legacy System: RSM - OCN

Sources

Other
PastScape Monument No:- 1129680

Legal

This monument is scheduled under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979 as amended as it appears to the Secretary of State to be of national importance. This entry is a copy, the original is held by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport.