Summary

Prehistoric enclosure 300m east of Budleigh Farm.

Source: Historic England

Details

This record was the subject of a minor enhancement on 5 November 2015. This record has been generated from an "old county number" (OCN) scheduling record. These are monuments that were not reviewed under the Monuments Protection Programme and are some of our oldest designation records.

This monument includes a circular enclosure situated on a west facing slope of Hingston Down overlooking the valley of the Wray Brook. The enclosure survives as a 30m diameter internal area surrounded by a substantial partly lynchetted, double orthostatic wall measuring up to 3m wide and 2m high. The enclosure is divided into three parts by historic field boundary walls.

Source: Historic England

Reasons for Scheduling

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. Within the landscape of Dartmoor there are many discrete plots of land enclosed by stone walls or banks of stone and earth, most of which date to the Bronze Age (c.2000-700 BC), though earlier and later examples also exist. They were constructed as stock pens or as protected areas for crop growing and were sometimes subdivided to accommodate stock and hut circle dwellings for farmers and herdsmen. The size and form of enclosures may therefore vary considerably depending on their particular function. Their variation in form, longevity and relationship to other monument classes provide important information on the diversity of social organisation and farming practices amongst prehistoric communities. They are particularly representative of their period and a substantial proportion of surviving examples are considered worthy of protection. Despite incorporation into an historic field system, the substantial prehistoric enclosure 300m east of Budleigh Farm survives comparatively well and will contain archaeological and environmental information relating to its use. In particular, important information on the construction details and evidence within the enclosure will provide an insight into agricultural and domestic life in the Bronze Age. The substantial character of the enclosure will provide a very useful contrast to the more numerous slighter built examples.

Source: Historic England