Details

This monument includes a stone hut circle settlement, fields and enclosures
situated on a terrace sheltered below a rock outcrop on the south-west facing
slope of White Tor overlooking the valley of the Colly Brook. Ten stone hut
circles can be identified within the settlement. Six of the huts are circular
in plan and measure between 2.2m and 2.8m in diameter. The remaining huts are
oval and measure less than 3.1m by 2.3m wide. The walls of all the huts are
composed of stone and earth and measure between 0.2m and 0.7m high. Two of
the huts consist of two rooms attached to each other. Six of the huts are
attached to boundary banks and four have visible doorways.
The stone hut circles lie within a field system including four fields defined
by rubble wall boundaries which are 2m wide on average and stand up to 0.7m
high. Seven small enclosures situated around the focus of the settlement are
defined by rubble walls which are 1.5m wide on average and stand up to 0.5m
high.

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,
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. Stone hut circles and hut settlements
were the dwelling places of prehistoric farmers on Dartmoor. They mostly date
from the Bronze Age, with the earliest examples on the Moor in this building
tradition dating to about 1700 BC. The stone-based round houses consist of low
walls or banks enclosing a circular floor area; remains of the turf or thatch
roof are not preserved. The huts may occur singly or in small or large groups
and may lie in the open or be enclosed by a bank of earth and stone. Although
they are common on the Moor, their longevity and their relationship with other
monument types 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.

The stone hut circle settlement, fields and enclosures 270m south-west of
White Tor survive well and contain archaeological remains and environmental
evidence relating to the development of the monument, the economy of its
inhabitants and the landscape in which they lived. As such, it provides a
valuable insight into the nature of Bronze Age occupation on the west side of
the Moor.

Source: Historic England

Sources

Books and journals
Butler, J, Dartmoor Atlas of Antiquities, (1991), 91-2
Other
Devon County Sites and Monuments Register, SX57NW117,
Gibson, A, Single Monument Class Description - Stone Hut Circles, (1987)
Gibson, A, Single Monument Class Description - Stone Hut Circles, (1987)
National Archaeological Record, SX57NW64,

Source: Historic England