Details

Many examples of Prehistoric funerary monuments are preserved on Dartmoor,
mostly dating from the Bronze Age (2500 - 500 BC). To celebrate or
commemorate the dead, mounds of earth or stone were piled in roughly
hemispherical shape over the burial, which was sometimes contained in a small
rectangular structure, or cist, made of stone slabs. Some monuments also
include kerbstones marking the outer edge of the mound and a surrounding
ditch.
This cairn is built around the granite outcrop on the summit of Shell Top,
which rises above the cairn. It consists of a mound of small boulders 16.5m
in diameter and 1.4m in height, with the natural outcrop of the tor rising a
further 1.4m. There is a triangular cavity between the blocks of the tor.
This measures 2.5m by 1.5m in length and width by 0.8m in depth and is
considered to be a natural feature.

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.
This tor cairn is a well-preserved example occupying a prominent position on
Shell Top. Its relationship to other monuments of similar type indicates the
wealth of evidence relating to the ritual side of life on this part of the
Moor.

Source: Historic England

Sources

Other
Devon County SMR SX 56 SE-062,

Source: Historic England