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. Stone
alignments, such as that north-west of Glasscombe Ball, provide rare
evidence of ceremonial or ritual practices on the Moor during the Late
Neolithic and Bronze Age.
Details
Stone alignments or stone rows consist of upright stones set in a single
line or in two or more parallel lines, up to several hundred metres in
length. They frequently lead to burial monuments such as small cairns, cists
and barrows and are therefore thought to have had a ceremonial function. The
70 or so examples known on Dartmoor were probably constructed in the Late
Neolithic period (around 2500 BC). This alignment, runs north-east/south-
west across the north-west side of Glasscombe Ball from a cairn at its
northern end to another at the southern end, beside the Redlake Railway
track. It cuts off the spur of Glasscombe Ball on the 360m contour. The
alignment consists of at least twenty fallen stones in a single row 84m
long, the stones are irregularly spaced and are up to 1m in height. A small
cairn lies near either end, both are 4.5m in diameter and 0.5m in height.
Legacy
The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.
Legacy System number:
10563
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
