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,
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. Cairnfields are concentrations of three or
more cairns sited within close proximity to one another; they may consist of
burial cairns or cairns built with stone cleared from the land surface
(clearance cairns). Round funerary cairns were constructed during the Bronze
Age (c.2000-700 BC) and consisted of earthen or rubble mounds, sometimes
ditched, which covered single or multiple burials. Often occupying prominent
locations, they are a major visual element in the modern landscape. The
considerable variation in the size of cairnfields and their 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.
Details
The monument, which falls into three areas of protection includes a
cairnfield, a short length of corn ditch and a length of partly lynchetted
rubble bank situated on a natural terrace on Cox Tor overlooking Whitchurch
Common. The cairnfield includes a cluster of at least 16 mounds, most of which
are circular in shape. The circular mounds vary in diameter between 2m and 8m,
with the average being 4.11m. The remaining two cairns are oval and these are
8.3m and 7m long by 3.7m and 4.7m wide. The cairns stand between 0.3m and 0.8m
high with the average being 0.55m. At least four of the cairns have been
robbed or partially excavated and one has been constructed adjacent to a large
granite rock. The partly lynchetted rubble bank lies to the north west of the
cairns and denotes the northern edge of the natural terrace on which the
cairnfield is situated. For much of its length it is 1.6m wide and stands up
to 0.4m high, although in places it survives as a substantial lynchet standing
1.3m high.
This monument sits within an extensive coaxial field system which extends
over much of Whitchurch Common and the slopes of Cox Tor. This forms the
subject of separate schedulings.
Legacy
The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.
Legacy System number:
22365
Legacy System:
RSM
Sources
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
