Details

The monument includes a stone hut circle lying on a small natural terrace on
an otherwise very steep east facing slope overlooking the West Okement River
and Lints Tor. The settlement includes a solitary stone hut circle which
survives as a 1.5m wide and 0.4m high rubble bank surrounding a 3.5m
diameter circular internal 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,
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 420m south west of Lints Tor survives well and forms part
of a group of at least three settlements situated within the upper reaches of
the West Okement River. This monument lies beyond the normally accepted
distribution of Dartmoor prehistoric settlements and will therefore provide a
valuble insight into Bronze Age activity on the high moorland. The position of
this hut on a very steep slope is unusual.

Source: Historic England

Sources

Other
MPP Fieldwork by S. Gerrard, Gerrard, S., (1998)

Source: Historic England