Details

The monument includes a round, situated on an upper north east-facing slope overlooking the valley of a tributary to the River Hayle. The round survives as a roughly circular enclosure of approximately 60m in diameter. It is enclosed by a partially upstanding rampart measuring up to 2m high, best preserved to the south west. Elsewhere the rampart forms a scarp with a buried outer ditch. The interior contains farm buildings, barns and surfaces which are excluded from the scheduling but the ground beneath these features is included.

Sources: HER:-
PastScape Monument No:-424691

Source: Historic England

Reasons for Scheduling

Rounds are small embanked enclosures, one of a range of settlement types dating to between the later Iron Age and the early post-Roman period. Usually circular or oval, they have a single earth and rubble bank and an outer ditch, with one entrance breaking the circuit. Excavations have produced drystone supporting walls within the bank, paved or cobbled entrance ways, post built gate structures, and remains of timber, turf or stone built houses of oval or rectangular plan, often set around the inner edge of the enclosing bank. Other evidence includes hearths, drains, gullies, pits and rubbish middens. Evidence for industrial activities has been recovered from some sites, including small scale metal working and, among the domestic debris, items traded from distant sources. Some rounds are associated with secondary enclosures, either abutting the round as an annexe or forming an additional enclosure. Rounds are viewed primarily as agricultural settlements, the equivalents of farming hamlets. They were replaced by unenclosed settlement types by the 7th century AD. Over 750 rounds are recorded in the British Isles, occurring in areas bordering the Irish Seas, but confined in England to south west Devon and especially Cornwall, where many more examples may await discovery. Most recorded examples are sited on hillslopes and spurs. Rounds are important as one of the major sources of information on settlement and social organisation of the Iron Age and Roman periods in south west England. Despite having been partly built over, the round at Castle Kayle Farm survives comparatively well and will contain archaeological and environmental evidence relating to its construction, function, longevity, agricultural practices, social organisation and domestic arrangements. Its continued use as a farm indicates the position has long been favoured for agricultural reasons.

Source: Historic England