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.
Details
This monument includes 36 stone hut circles dispersed within an
irregular aggregate field system situated on a gentle west-facing slope
overlooking the valley of the River Meavy and forming part of a large
unenclosed stone hut circle settlement between Hart Tor and Devil's Bridge.
The stone hut circles are composed of stone and earth banks surrounding an
internal area. Of the 36 hut circles, one is oval in plan and measures
6.3m long by 3m wide. The remaining 35 huts are circular in plan and
the internal diameter of these buildings varies from 2.3m to 7m. The height of
all the walls varies between 0.3m and 1m, with the average being 0.58m. At
least seven of the huts contain hearths, two are conjoined, 21 have
visible doorways, two have porches and five are attached to boundary walls.
Eighteen of the huts were partly excavated in 1895 by the Dartmoor Exploration
Committee. This work recovered large quantities of Bronze Age pottery,
rubbing stones, flint scrapers, pot boilers and charcoal.
The irregular aggregate field system survives as a series of low rubble walls
standing up to 0.5m high. In the northern part of the monument three distinct
field-plots are visible, whilst towards the south a few short lengths of
fragmentary walling suggest that the remains of the field system are more
extensive.
Three 19th century granite rifle range distance markers survive within the
monument. These are included within the scheduling since they provide
important information concerning reuse of this area during the post-medieval
period, and their removal would damage the underlying archaeological deposits.
A further eight stone hut circles forming part of this extensive unenclosed
stone hut circle settlement survive to the south and east of this monument.
These are included in other proposals.
A fragmentary field system lies to the east of the monument, but this is not
included because not enough of the fields are visible to establish their
character and extent.
Legacy
The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.
Legacy System number:
22303
Legacy System:
RSM
Sources
Books and journals Other
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 Culture, Media and Sport.
End of official list entry
