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Summary

The remains of a line of tinners prospecting pits. Some of the pits are rectangular and measure 2 by 1 metres. Others are square and are 1.5 metres. All are accompanied by spoil heaps.

Location

Protected Status

• Scheduled Monument 1018930: Two irregular aggregate field systems with associated settlements, part of a coaxial field system, boundary stones and historic fields on Riddon Ridge

Other References/Statuses

• National Monuments Record: SX67NE145
• National Record of the Historic Environment: 913364
• Old DCC SMR Ref: SX67NE/211
• Old DCC SMR Ref: SX67NE/212
• Old SAM Ref: 28733

Monument Type(s) and Dates

• PROSPECTING PIT (Constructed, Early Medieval to Early 20th Century - 1066 AD (Between) to 1901 AD (Between))

Full description

National Monument Record, 1977, SX6676/4, 98-103 (Aerial Photograph). SDV246734.

Royal Commission on the Historical Monuments of England, 1985, Aerial Photograph Project (Dartmoor) - Dartmoor Pre-NMP (Cartographic). SDV319854.

SX 6659 7632 Group of trial pits visible on 1977 NMR aerial photograph.
SX 6651 7632 Group of trial pits visible on NMR 1977 aerial photograph and probably related to SX67NE/211.

Royal Commission for the Historical Monuments of England, 1987-1993, Duchy Farms Project Survey Visit, S. Probert (Report - Survey). SDV350839.

(07/09/1992) SX 66677637 to SX 66437629. A line of tinners' prospecting pits run east-north-east to west-south-west over the crest and upper west flank of Riddon Ridge east of Whiteslade House.
Some of the pits are rectangular in plan and measure approximately 2.0m by 1.0m while others are square and 1.5m across. All possess spoil heaps on the downslope side. The sharpness of the sides of these pits would seem to indicate a relatively late, perhaps even C19th, origin.
A second line of pits (SX 67 NE 152) lies parallel and 100m south-east of this row.

Gerrard, S., 1990-2002, Monument Protection Programme. Archaeological Item Dataset., MPP 152118 (Report - Survey). SDV277946.

(17/03/1999) A group of prospecting pits on Riddon Ridge. Two parallel line of prospecting pits. An outlying pit lying at SX 66957643 probably represents the earliest. Many more pits then those shown on the RCHME plan of this area were noted during MPP fieldwork. The location of the additional pits were not however recorded.

Sources / Further Reading

Associated Monuments

Associated Finds: none recorded

Associated Events

• EDV8296 - Dartmeet Premier Archaeological Landscape (PAL) Field Investigation Project
• EDV8409 - Dartmoor Royal Forest Project
• EDV8423 - Duchy Farms Project

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