Down Ridge stone circle and outlying standing stone 570m and 650m south of Forest Inn

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 provide 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 circles, or circular arrangements of upright stones, were set into the ground and acted as ceremonial and funerary monuments during the later Neolithic and Bronze Age periods (c.2400-700 BC). On Dartmoor they are often found in association with stone alignments and burial monuments such as cairns and cists. The circles may be single or enclose further circles; they may occur as isolated examples or in groups. The 26 examples on Dartmoor form one of the most dense concentrations of monuments of this type in the country. Due to their relative rarity (with a national population of only some 200 examples) and longevity as a monument type, all stone circles are considered to be nationally important.

The stone circle and outlying stone 570m and 650m south of Forest Inn survive comparatively well and are known from past excavation to contain environmental and archaeological information about the use of the site, and the landscape in which it was located.

Details

The monument, which falls into two areas of protection, includes a stone circle and an associated outlying outlying standing stone situated on a gentle north facing slope overlooking the valley of the River Dart. The stone circle measures 25m in diameter and is denoted by five upright granite slabs, standing up to 1.45m high, which are confined to its south western sector. A further six recumbent stones lie where they have fallen. The stone circle was partially excavated in 1904 by the Dartmoor Exploration Committee and their work revealed the original ground surface covered with charcoal. The standing stone lies 85m south east of the stone circle and survives as a triangular shaped block up to 0.86m high, tapering to a roughly rounded top.

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:

28737

Legacy System:

RSM

Sources

Books and journals
Butler, J, Dartmoor Atlas of Antiquities - The North in Dartmoor Atlas of Antiquities, (1993), 202
Butler, J, Dartmoor Atlas of Antiquities - The North in Dartmoor Atlas of Antiquities, (1993), 202

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