An enclosed stone hut circle settlement, round cairn, pillow mound and tinworking earthworks 820m WSW of Nun's Cross

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.

In addition to the enclosed settlement, the monument includes a round cairn. Round cairns are prehistoric funerary monuments dating to the Bronze Age (about 2000-700 BC). They were constructed as earthen or rubble mounds, the latter predominating in areas of upland Britain where such raw materials were locally available in abundance. Round cairns may cover single or multiple burials and are sometimes surrounded by an outer ditch. Often occupying prominent locations, they are a major visual element in the modern landscape. Their considerable variation in form and longevity as a monument type provides important information on the diversity of beliefs and social organisation amongst early prehistoric communities. They are particularly representative of their period and a substantial proportion of surviving examples are considered worthy of protection. Dartmoor provides one of the best preserved and most dense concentrations of round cairns in south western Britain. The monument also includes a pillow mound which is a purpose-built breeding place and shelter for rabbits or hares. Pillow mounds are low oblong shaped mounds of soil and/or stones in which the animals lived. They are usually between 15m and 40m in length and between 5m and 10m in width. Most have a ditch around at least three sides to facilitate drainage. Inside, are a series of interconnected narrow trenches excavated and covered with stone or turf before the mound was erected. Pillow mounds usually occur together in groups within a warren, but this example, unusually, is isolated and does not form part of a warren. The final components of the monument are a length of leat and part of a tinwork. These features are associated with the post-medieval exploitation of the rich tin deposits found on Dartmoor. The enclosed stone hut circle settlement 820m WSW of Nun's Cross survives comparatively well despite limited post-medieval interference. This monument forms the largest part of the only settlement on Dartmoor where an agglomerate enclosure containing huts both inside and outside the enclosed area is associated with a separate agglomerated enclosure in which all the huts lie within or are attached to the enclosure boundaries. The cairn lying within the settlement lies on the interface between the nearby tin deposits and grazing land and may contain information concerning both or either of these activities.

Details

This monument includes an agglomerated enclosure, ten stone hut circles, a round cairn, a pillow mound, a number of tinworking earthworks and a length of leat straddling a shallow north-facing valley overlooking Newleycombe Lake. The enclosure is composed of three conjoined enclosures defined by a partly faced rubble wall measuring 1.5m wide and up to 0.5m high. The interior of the southern enclosure measures 80m north to south by 90m east to west and the north western enclosure, which is sub-triangular in shape, measures 44m north to south by 37m east to west. The original dimensions of the third enclosure are no longer discernible following later tin streamworking which has removed part of its extent. There are three gaps in the boundaries which may represent original entrances, although it is possible that they may be the result of limited post-medieval stone robbing. Three stone hut circles lie within the largest enclosure, three further examples are attached to the inner face of the boundary and another is linked to this same wall. Another hut is linked to the sub-triangular enclosure boundary wall. The two remaining huts lie immediately south of the enclosures and are not enclosed in any way. The stone hut circles are composed of stone and earth banks each surrounding an internal area. Nine of the huts are circular in plan, and their internal diameters vary between 2.5m and 5.2m, with the average being 3.79m. The height of the surrounding walls varies between 0.4m and 0.7m, with the average being 0.52m. The interior of the remaining hut is oval in plan, measures 3.5m long by 2m wide and is surrounded by a 1.1m wide and 0.4m high wall. Four of the huts possess visible doorways. A round cairn stands on the crest of the east-facing slope overlooking the interior of the large enclosure, although it is not clear whether it is earlier, contemporary or later than the settlement. The mound measures 7m in diameter and stands up to 1.3m high. A hollow in the centre of the mound, suggests partial early excavation or robbing. A pillow mound lies in the north eastern enclosure and survives as a 10m long, 5.6m wide and 1.2m high, flat-topped, oblong shaped mound of soil and stone surrounded by a 2.5m wide and 0.6m deep ditch from which material was quarried during the construction of the mound. A clearly defined shallow gully leads for 3m from the lower end of the mound. These gullies have traditonally been interpreted as drainage ditches, but they may also have served as preferred access routes for rabbits and vermin. Traps placed within these gullies could have been used to control both rabbit and vermin populations. This pillow mound is not known to belong to a warren and may have been constructed by the tinners working the nearby tinworks, to help supplement their diet. The monument also includes part of a tinwork, which survives as a gully and series of pits with associated dumps. These pits were excavated by tinners to gain access to the upper parts of a lode, which was then mined to a relatively shallow depth. This type of tinwork is known as a lode-back work. The gully lies downslope of the pits and may represent a drainage level or small-scale opencast work. Within the enclosure the gully measures 2.5m wide and up to 1.7m deep. A leat cutting through the centre of the large enclosure measures 0.8m wide and 0.1m deep and the associated bank of material upcast downslope during construction is 1m wide and 0.1m high. This leat originally carried water from SX 59796985 to a wheelpit at SX 59266994, a reservoir at SX 58066960 and opencast tin mines known as openworks at SX 58206965, SX 57606965 and SX 57636920. The areas north and south of the monument include post-medieval tinworks which are not included in the scheduling. An enclosed settlement lying a short distance to the south west of this monument is the subject of a separate scheduling.

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:

24123

Legacy System:

RSM

Sources

Books and journals
Crossing, W, Crossing's Dartmoor Worker, (1992), 61
Newman, P, Rep. Trans. Devon. As. Advnt. Sci. in The Moorland Meavy - A Tinners' Landscape, Vol. 119, (1987), 223-235

Other
Gerrard, G.A.M., The Early Cornish Tin Industry: An Arch. & Historical Survey, 1986, Unpubl. PhD thesis, St David's, Wales
MPP fieldwork by S. Gerrard,
AM 107, Robinson, R, Pounds and hut circles at head of Newleycombe Lake, (1983)
AM 107, Robinson, R, Pounds and hut circles at head of Newleycombe Lake, (1983)
Devon County Sites and Monuments Register, SX56NE123, (1981)
Gibson, A, Single Monument Class Description - Stone Hut Circles, (1987)
National Archaeological Record, SX56NE107,

End of official list entry

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