Dean Camp hillfort

Reasons for Designation

Slight univallate hillforts are defined as enclosures of various shapes, generally between 1ha and 10ha in size, situated on or close to hilltops and defined by a single line of earthworks, the scale of which is relatively small. They date to between the Late Bronze Age and Early Iron Age (eighth - fifth centuries BC), the majority being used for 150 to 200 years prior to their abandonment or reconstruction. Slight univallate hillforts have generally been interpreted as stock enclosures, redistribution centres, places of refuge and permanent settlements. The earthworks generally include a rampart, narrow level berm, external ditch and counterscarp bank, while access to the interior is usually provided by two entrances comprising either simple gaps in the earthwork or an inturned rampart. Postholes revealed by excavation indicate the occasional presence of portal gateways while more elaborate features like overlapping ramparts and outworks are limited to only a few examples. Internal features included timber or stone round houses; large storage pits and hearths; scattered postholes, stakeholes and gullies; and square or rectangular buildings supported by four to six posts, often represented by postholes, and interpreted as raised granaries. Slight univallate hillforts are rare with around 150 examples recorded nationally. Although on a national scale the number is low, in Devon they comprise one of the major classes of hillfort. In other areas where the distribution is relatively dense, for example, Wessex, Sussex, the Cotswolds and the Chilterns, hillforts belonging to a number of different classes occur within the same region. Examples are also recorded in eastern England, the Welsh Marches, central and southern England. In view of the rarity of slight univallate hillforts and their importance in understanding the transition between Bronze Age and Iron Age communities, all examples which survive comparatively well and have potential for the recovery of further archaeological remains are believed to be of national importance.

Despite cultivation erosion, Dean Camp hillfort will contain archaeological and environmental remains relating to the hillfort and the landscape in which it was constructed.

Details

The monument includes a slight univallate hillfort situated on a north west facing spur above a shallow valley. The hillfort has a roughly `D' shaped interior with dimensions of 250m north west-south east and 210m north east- south west. Surrounding the enclosed area, on the south east and north east sides, is a single rampart comprising a bank up to 8m wide and 1.3m high and a ditch which, although no longer visible on the surface, will survive as a buried feature 8m wide. On the north west and south west sides the ramparts have been ploughed but are visible as a scarp, except in the south. The scarp slope is most pronounced in the north west, where the level of the interior is 2m above the bottom of the scarp. The earthworks are said to have been much reduced by cultivation by 1875 but are shown to be complete on the Ordnance Survey map of 1830. A gap in the ramparts, in the north east, may represent the original entrance. Excluded from the scheduling are all modern field boundaries, although the ground beneath them is included.

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:

31184

Legacy System:

RSM

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