Stone hut circle and round cairn 800m east of Woodhead

Reasons for Designation

Round cairns are prehistoric funerary monuments dating to the Bronze Age (c.2000-700 BC). They were constructed as stone mounds covering single or multiple burials. These burials may be placed within the mound in stone-lined compartments called cists. In some cases the cairn was surrounded by a ditch. Often occupying prominent locations, cairns are a major visual element in the modern landscape. They are a relatively common feature of the uplands and are the stone equivalent of the earthen round barrows of the lowlands. Their considerable variation in form and longevity as a monument type provide important information on the diversity of beliefs and social organisation amongst early prehistoric communities. They are particularly representative of their period and a substantial proportion of surviving examples are considered worthy of protection.

Stone hut circles were the dwelling places of prehistoric farmers, mostly dating from the Bronze Age (c.2000-700 BC) although later examples are known. The stone-based round houses survive as low walls or banks enclosing a circular floor area; remains of a turf or thatch roof are not preserved. The huts occur singly or in small or large groups and may occur in the open or be enclosed by a bank of earth and stone. Their longevity and their relationship with other monument types provides important information on the diversity of social organisation and farming practices among prehistoric communities. They are particularly representative of their period and a substantial proportion of surviving examples are considered worthy of protection. Despite limited excavation of the hut circle, the stone hut circle and round cairn 800m east of Woodhead survive well. They lie close to other prehistoric monuments on the fells around Bewcastle and thus indicate the importance of this area in prehistoric times and the diversity of monument classes to be found here.

Details

The monument includes a prehistoric stone hut circle and an adjacent round cairn located on the gently sloping hillside 800m east of Woodhead. The hut circle measures 12m north-south by 11m east-west externally, with a stone wall measuring up to a maximum of 1m high internally on the northern side where the hut's floor has been cut into the hillside to form a flat living surface. There is an entrance on the south west side of the hut. Approximately 10m to the south of the hut circle there is a round cairn which includes a slightly oval shaped mound of partly turf covered stones measuring 6m north-south by 5.5m east-west and up to 1m high. Limited excavation of the hut circle in 1939 found a hearthstone to the right of the entrance and two shallow holes cut into the floor of the hut. These are thought to have contained poles supporting a roof of skins. Other finds included a stone button, a stone ring, and a flint flake.

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:

27754

Legacy System:

RSM

Sources

Books and journals
Hodgson, K S, Trans Cumb and West Antiq and Arch Soc. New Ser in Some Excavations In The Bewcastle District, Vol. XL, (1940), 162-6
Spence, J E, Trans Cumb and West Antiq and Arch Soc. New Ser. in Report of the Committee for Prehistoric Studies, 1939, Vol. XXXVII, (1937), 98

End of official list entry

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