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 provides 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.
This site, north-east of Yadsworthy, is a well-preserved example of an
extensive unenclosed hut settlement with enclosures and provides exceptional
evidence of how early farming and stock-rearing communities lived on
the Moor.
Details
Low stone walls or banks enclosing a circular internal floor area form the
remains of timber and turf or thatch-roofed dwellings occupied by farmers of
the prehistoric period. They may occur singly or in larger groups and were
sometimes built within a surrounding boundary bank or enclosure. On
Dartmoor, the long tradition of building stone-based round houses can be
traced back to the second millennium BC, probably from about 1700 BC
onwards.
This unenclosed stone hut settlement, comprising thirty-four hut circles and
six enclosures, lies on a gentle slope north-east of Yadsworthy. The
archaeological features lie on either side of a modern track. Fifteen of the
huts are attached to enclosures or banks, four are in two attached pairs,
the rest are detached and they vary in size and construction, remaining up
to a metre high and 12m. in diameter with orthostatic walling and
entrances. The banks also include orthostats, remaining over a metre in
height in some places.
The modern waterworks track is excluded from the scheduling, but the
underlying deposits are included.
Legacy
The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.
Legacy System number:
10518
Legacy System:
RSM
End of official list entry
