Details

This monument includes two cairns situated on the ridge south of Longstone
Hill forming part of a cairnfield, including at least 64 mounds, overlooking
the valleys of the Redaven Brook and West Okement River. Other cairns lie in
the immediate vicinity and these are covered by separate schedulings. Both
mounds are sub-circular in shape and these measure 2.8m and 4m in diameter and
stand 0.2m and 0.4m high. A hollow in the north eastern side of the southern
mound suggests partial early excavation or robbing. Many of the mounds
within the cairnfield are crest sited and are therefore clearly visible from
long distances to the east and west. This situation strongly suggests that
many of the cairns probably contain burials, although the size and shape of
some mounds suggests that some may also be associated with stone clearance
connected with cultivation of the area.

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.

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,
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.

The cairnfield on Longstone Hill survives well and contains archaeological and
environmental evidence relating to the monument and the landscape in which it
was constructed. It provides a valuable insight into Bronze Age funerary,
ritual and agricultural activity on the north western side of the moor. This
cairnfield is more extensive and contains more cairns than any other similar
site known on the moor. Its association with a standing stone and single
stone hut circle is rare.

Source: Historic England

Sources

Other
Devon County Sites and Monuments Register, SX59SE39, (1982)
MPP fieldwork by S. Gerrard,

Source: Historic England