Eleven stone hut circles, a length of boundary wall and a field system forming part of an unenclosed settlement on the north-east slope of Sharpitor

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.

The stone hut circle settlements and associated field system on the slopes of Sharpitor survive comparatively well and will contain archaeological structures, features and deposits in addition to environmental evidence which, combined, will provide an insight into settlement and agricultural practice on the western side of the Moor.

Details

This monument includes eleven stone hut circles, a length of boundary wall and a field system situated on the north-east facing slope of Sharpitor overlooking the valley of the River Meavy. This monument forms the largest part of an unenclosed stone hut circle settlement. Of the huts, nine are circular in plan and measure between 2m and 8.3m in diameter. The remaining huts are oval and measure 6m long by 3m wide and 3.3m long by 2.8m wide. The walls of all the huts are composed of stone and earth and measure between 0.3m and 0.7m high. The average diameter of the circular huts is 4.45m and the average height of the walls is 0.5m. Seven of the huts have visible doorways and five are attached to boundary walls. Four of these huts are linked by a single length of lyncheted rubble wall curving through 180 degrees, which measures 45m long, 1.6m wide and 0.4m high. The field system includes the boundaries of one complete field and this measures 70m north to south by 55m east to west. On the northern side the boundary consists of a 4m wide lynchet standing up to 1.3m high and elsewhere it is visible as a low bank averaging 3m wide and 0.2m high. Further traces of boundary banks are visible to the south-west of this field, but the shape of the individual field-plots is not discernible because they survive largely as buried features.

MAP EXTRACT The site of the monument is shown on the attached map extract. It includes a 2 metre boundary around the archaeological features, considered to be essential for the monument's support and preservation.

Legacy

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

Legacy System number:

22272

Legacy System:

RSM

Sources

Other
Gibson, A, Single Monument Class Description - Stone Hut Circles, (1987)
Devon County Sites and Monuments Register, SX57SE28,

End of official list entry

All text content is available under the Open Government Licence v3.0 , except where otherwise stated. Any supplied maps are © Crown Copyright [and database rights] 2026 OS AC0000815036 and may not be reproduced without permission.

Print the official list entry