Details

The monument includes an unenclosed stone hut circle settlement situated on a
gentle west facing slope overlooking the valley of the River Walkham. The
settlement includes at least seven stone hut circles, two of which are
associated with courtyards. The stone hut circles survive as banks each
surrounding a circular internal area of between 2.4m and 6.8m in diameter,
with the average being 4.4m. The heights of the surrounding walls vary between
0.3m and 0.85m, with the average being 0.56m. Five of the huts have visible
doorways and are composed of orthostatic and rubble bank walls.

MAP EXTRACT
The site of the monument is shown on the attached map extract.

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 unenclosed stone hut circle settlement 200m west of Yellowmeade Farm
survives well and represents an important source of environmental and
archaeological information. The settlement is one of at least four similar
sites in this part of the Moor and overlooks the well known broadly
contemporary ritual complex at Merrivale.

Source: Historic England

Sources

Books and journals
Butler, J, Dartmoor Atlas of Antiquities, (1994), 14

Source: Historic England