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 enclosure with hut circles north of Bala Brook is a well-preserved
example and provides important evidence of how early farming and stock-rearing
communities lived on the Moor. In addition, the tinners' caches give valuable
information on the later industrial exploitation of the area.
Details
Low stone walls or banks enclosing a circular internal floor area from 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 1700 BC onwards. This enclosure lies
above the north bank of Bala Brook, close to another and to two conjoined hut
circles which lie between the enclosures. The enclosure is roughly semi-
circular in shape and is c.0.75ha in area. The wall, incorporating some large
boulders, is up to 0.75m in height and up to 4m in width, it narrows along the
straighter, incomplete side above the stream bank. There are possible
entrances at the north-west and south-east and ten hut circles in the
enclosure, which is cut by the water intake fence. The huts are up to 12m in
diameter with walls up to a metre in height and 2m in thickness, they have
entrances on the west or north-west side and some are set into the slope. A
tinner's cache has been built into one of the western huts.
Legacy
The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.
Legacy System number:
10579
Legacy System:
RSM
End of official list entry
