Unenclosed hut circle settlement with incorporated enclosure 1.5km north-west of Wardbrook Farm

Reasons for Designation

Bodmin Moor, the largest of the Cornish granite uplands, has long been recognised to have exceptional preservation of archaeological remains. The Moor has been the subject of detailed archaeological survey and is one of the best recorded upland landscapes in England. The extensive relict landscapes of prehistoric, medieval and post-medieval date provide direct evidence for human exploitation of the Moor from the earliest prehistoric period onwards. The well-preserved and often visible relationship between settlement sites, field systems, ceremonial and funerary monuments as well as later industrial remains provides significant insights into successive changes in the pattern of land use through time. Stone hut circles were the dwelling places of prehistoric farmers on the Moor, mostly dating from the Bronze Age (c.2000-700 BC). The stone-based round houses survive as low walls or banks enclosing a circular floor area; remains of a turf or thatch roof are not preserved. The huts occur singly or in small or large groups and may occur in the open or be enclosed by a bank of earth and stone. Although they are common on the Moor, their longevity of use and their relationship with other monument types provides important information on the diversity of social organisation and farming practices among prehistoric communities. They are particularly representative of their period and a substantial proportion of surviving examples are considered worthy of protection.

This unenclosed hut circle settlement on the lower slope of Kilmar Tor has survived well, displaying several unusual features including the coursed hut circle walling, the integral enclosure and the exceptionally large hut circles. The proximity of this large settlement to other broadly contemporary settlement sites, linear boundaries and field systems demonstrates well the nature of settlement and land use during the Bronze Age.

Details

The monument includes a large unenclosed Prehistoric hut circle settlement incorporating a small central enclosure, situated near other broadly contemporary unenclosed hut circle settlements, linear boundaries and field systems on the lower south-western slope of Kilmar Tor on eastern Bodmin Moor. The settlement covers an area of nearly 1.5 hectares, visible as a sub-triangular concentration of 25 stone hut circles, extending for 240m NW-SE along the slope, but with the greatest aggregation of hut circles towards its SE end where it extends up the slope, SW-NE, for 140m. The hut circles survive with circular walls of rubble and boulders, largely heaped but coursed in some cases, up to 2m wide and 1m high, around levelled internal areas ranging generally from 4m to 9m in diameter. Two hut circles are exceptionally large at 13.5m and 15m in internal diameter with walling up to 1.5m high. The hut circle walls are commonly faced with both inner and outer edge-set slabs. Entrance gaps are visible in twelve hut circles, mostly facing southerly directions and lined in three examples by end-set slabs, called orthostats. The entrance of one hut circle has an adjoining external wall extending for 4.5m and terminating at an orthostat. Four hut circles have small rubble-walled annexes. Two have double annexes attached to one side: one has a single adjoining annexe, while the other has a concentric annexe formed by a boulder wall concentric with, and up to 3m beyond, the northern half of the hut circle wall. The hut circles are generally separated from each other by gaps of 2-10m, but some cluster to form discrete pairs or triple groups within the overall spread of the settlement. Some hut circles adjoin others, especially in the SE sector of the settlement, while several others are linked by short lengths of rubble walling. At the centre of the aggregation of hut circles in the SE half of the settlement is an ovoid enclosure whose rubble walling, with inner and outer facing slabs, is of similar construction to the hut circle walls. The enclosure has an oval inner precinct measuring 28m NW-SE by 18m NE-SW, with a gap 13m wide in its SE sector. A concentric outer portion of the enclosure is defined by a second wall running beyond the NW quarter of the inner wall, 7.5m from it on the western side, rising to 21m on the north, and linked to the west side of the inner enclosure by a short cross-wall. Hut circles adjoin the enclosure's walling at both north and south, while from its north-western sector, two short walls extend out to a nearby hut circle. Smaller hut circle settlements of different character are situated on the same slope, beyond this monument, 100m to the north and 100m to the south-east.

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:

15132

Legacy System:

RSM

Sources

Other
consulted 9/1991, Cornwall SMR entry for PRN 1215,
consulted 9/1991, Carter, A./RCHME, 1:2500 AP transcription for SX 2474,
consulted 9/1991, Cornwall SMR entry for PRN 1217,
consulted 9/1991, Cornwall SMR entry for PRN 1287,
consulted 9/1991, Carter, A./RCHME, 1:2500 AP transcriptions for SX 2473 & SX 2474,
consulted 9/1991, Cornwall SMR entry for PRN 1274 (SE wall -incompletely recorded),

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.