Cairn on Hurston Ridge 1km north west of Warren House Inn

Overview

Heritage Category: Scheduled Monument

List Entry Number: 1020182

Date first listed: 09-Feb-2001

Location

The building or site itself may lie within the boundary of more than one authority.

National Park: DARTMOOR

National Grid Reference: SX 67006 81841

Summary

Legacy Record - This information may be included in the List Entry Details.

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. Round cairns are prehistoric funerary monuments dating to the Bronze Age (c.2000-700 BC). They were constructed as earthen or rubble mounds, the latter predominating in areas of upland Britain where such raw materials were locally available in abundance. Round cairns may cover single or multiple burials and are sometimes surrounded by an outer ditch. Often occupying prominent locations, they are a major visual element in the modern landscape. 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. Dartmoor provides one of the best preserved and most dense concentrations of round cairns in south- western Britain.

The cairn on Hurston Ridge 1km north west of Warren House Inn survives comparatively well and is known from partial excavation to contain important archaeological and environmental information relating to the monument and the landscape in which it was built.

History

Legacy Record - This information may be included in the List Entry Details.

Details

The monument includes a round cairn situated on a ridge between Assycombe Hill and Water Hill overlooking much of central Dartmoor. The cairn, which is flat- topped, measures 9m in diameter and stands up to 0.6m high. A recumbent triangular stone on the north eastern edge of the cairn may have once stood upright. In 1900 this cairn was investigated by the Dartmoor Exploration Committee who found below a slab, a large upturned urn covering a charcoal filled pit.

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: 28746

Legacy System: RSM

Sources

Other
Devon County Sites and Monuments Register, SX68SE45, (1995)

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 Digital, Culture, Media and Sport.