Swap Hill stone setting, 275m south east of the Long Combe sheep pen

Reasons for Designation

Exmoor is the most easterly of the three main upland areas in the south western peninsula of England. In contrast to the other two areas, Dartmoor and Bodmin Moor, there has been no history of antiquarian research and little excavation of its monuments. However, survey work has confirmed a comparable richness of archaeological remains with evidence of human exploitation and occupation from the Mesolithic period to the present day. The well-preserved and often visible relationships between settlement sites, major land boundaries, trackways and ceremonial and funerary monuments give insight into successive changes in the pattern of land-use through time. Stone settings consist of a group of standing stones set out in an irregular or random pattern. There are a number of such sites on Exmoor where they appear to be a regional variation of the more common stone alignments. Stone settings are often sited close to prehistoric burial monuments, such as small cairns and cists, and to ritual monuments, such as stone circles, and are therefore considered to have had an important ceremonial function. Stone settings were being constructed and used from the Late Neolithic period to the Middle Bronze Age (c.2500-1000 BC) and provide rare evidence of ceremonial and ritual practices during these periods. Due to their rarity and longevity as a monument type all surviving examples are considered to be of national importance.

The importance of the Swap Hill stone setting is increased by the proximity of two other lithic monuments in the immediate area. The monument survives well and will retain archaeological and environmental evidence relating to the development and use of the site.

Details

The monument includes six standing stones and the archaeologically sensitive area between and around them. The site is located on the south west facing slopes of the north western spur of Swap Hill 275m south east of the Long Combe sheep pen. The stone setting occupies a kite-shaped area 21.5m long by 10m wide which extends for 0.01ha. The two largest stones form the longer, east-west axis and are both 900mm high, 600mm wide and 200mm thick. The stone at the west end of this line has two low stones at its north east end. The two smaller stones which mark the shorter north-south axis are both 300mm in height and width and 100mm thick.

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:

25210

Legacy System:

RSM

Sources

Books and journals
Quinnell, N V, Dunn, C J, Lithic Monuments within the Exmoor National Park: A New Survey, (1992), 46

End of official list entry

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