Details

The monument includes an enclosure containing a stone hut circle situated
on a gentle south facing slope of Cox Tor overlooking Whitchurch Common. The
enclosure survives as a 50m long by 40m wide `D'-shaped area denoted by a 3.5m
wide earthwork bank standing up to 0.5m high. The stone hut circle lies within
the south western corner of the enclosure and survives as a 1.8m wide and 0.4m
high earthwork bank surrounding a 2.3m long by 1.5m wide internal area.
This monument sits within an extensive coaxial field system which extends
over much of Whitchurch Common and the slopes of Cox Tor, and forms the
subject of separate schedulings.

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 enclosure and stone hut circle 770m south of Cox Tor survive well and
together with an associated coaxial field system form part of a particularly
well-preserved palimpsest on the lower slopes of Cox Tor containing abundant
evidence for the use of the area in both prehistoric and historic times.

Source: Historic England

Sources

Other
MPP fieldwork by S. Gerrard, Gerrard, S., (2000)
Title: Cox Tor Survey
Source Date: 1991
Author:
Publisher:
Surveyor:
1:2500 plan

Source: Historic England