Details

This enclosure with hut circles lies on the south-east facing slope of Eastern
Tor, above the north bank of the River Plym. It is irregular in shape, its
eastern side having been incorporated in a later intake wall. The bank is
built of earth and stone with some very large boulders and is up to 2.5m in
width and 0.4m in height generally, but up to 1m in height where the large
boulders stand. The enclosure is subdivided by a wall cutting off the
north-eastern end and there are two freestanding hut circles in the larger
part of the enclosure. These hut circles are both 8m in diameter with double
faced walls 1m in thickness and 0.3m in height. The southern hut has large
stones up to 0.6m in height incorporated in its walls and an entrance to the
north-east. The northern hut has an entrance to the west. The enclosure covers
an area of c.0.3ha.

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 provides 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.2500-1000 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.

This enclosure with hut circles is a well-preserved example and is one of
several in the vicinity of Eastern Tor.

Source: Historic England

Sources

Other
SX56NE-020, REF SX56NE-020, (1990)

Source: Historic England