Stone hut circle 610m west of Cawsand Beacon forming an outlying part of an enclosed stone hut circle settlement

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 610m west of Cawsand Beacon survives well within an area containing a large number of similar monuments. Deep peat deposits within and around the hut protect archaeological remains and contain environmental evidence relating to the monument, the economy of its inhabitants and the landscape in which they lived. As such, this provides a valuable insight into the nature of Bronze Age occupation on the north side of the moor. This hut lies a short distance from a large number of similar structures and may therefore contain different and contrasting information to that available in the nearby settlements.

Details

This monument includes a stone hut circle forming an outlying part of an enclosed stone hut circle settlement lying on a north west facing slope of Cawsand Hill (also known as Cosdon Hill) overlooking the valley of the River Taw. The monument forms part of a discrete group of settlements lying on the lower slopes of Cawsand and White Hill. In particular, two broadly contemporary stone hut circle settlements lie a short distance east and south east of the monument. The stone hut circle is composed of a stone and earth bank measuring 1.5m wide and 0.6m high, surrounding a circular internal area with a diameter of 5m.

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:

24142

Legacy System:

RSM

Sources

Other
MPP fieldwork by S. Gerrard,
Plate 16, Greeves, T A P, The Archaeology of Dartmoor from the Air, (1985)
Devon County Sites and Monuments Register, SX69SW46, (1985)
Gibson, A, Single Monument Class Description - Stone Hut Circles, (1987)

End of official list entry

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