More information : Centred at NZ 1219 2496 around a disused 18th/19th century coal
shaft, and on both sides of the old trackway, are six enigmatic
earthworks of similar form, overgrown with turf and bracken. They
were surveyed at 1:500 and 1:1000 in 1984 by RCHME (marked 14 on
RCHME 1:1000 plan).
The earthworks take the form of rectangular or square enclosures
bounded by an earthen bank, up to 0.6 m internal height, on all sides
except the north which is open. The one exception to this rule,
which appears to overlay the parallel banks of what may have been a
hollow-way, has its open side is to the south towards the old shaft.
They are all roughly the same size, varying from 7.0m-9.0m internally
by approximately 6.0m-8.0m transversely, the longer axis being
generally E-W. All are distinguished by containing within them from
one to five parallel earthen banks up to 0.4 m high; they resemble
combs in planform.
These banks are known locally as 'Roman Graves' and some have been
dug into with, as far as can be ascertained, no finds made. As
stated, one of the earthworks is apparently later than the hollow-way
it overlaps (presumably Medieval or later), and another overlays a
linear ditch (NZ 12 SW 28), putatively prehistoric. This evidence,
together with their somewhat sharp profile, indicates a fairly recent
date; their proximity to the disused coal shaft may suggest an
association, but no similar structures have been recognised in the
vicinity of any other shafts. An alternative explanation may be that
the association is with the old trackway running through the group,
itself undatable except that it is earlier than the tramway
embankments to the east and west and later than the linear ditch (NZ
12 SW 28). Superficially the planform of the internal banks resemble
stalls for cattle or horses, but in the final analysis the function
of these structures cannot be ascertained. (1)
NZ 120 250. Enclosures and industrial workings on Cockfield Fell.
Scheduled No DU/103. (2)
Five small square enclosures are visible as earthworks on air photographs and lidar, centred at NZ 1220 2496. Of probable post medieval date, the enclosures are 'C'-shaped with an open north face. They meaure between 10m and 12m across. The internal comb-like elements were only slightly visible on the aerial sources and were no mapped. Their function is uncertain, though they may be associated with industrial activity on Cockfield Fell. One of the enclosures appears to overlie an earlier sinuous boundary (UID 873995). The earthworks remain extant on the latest 2015 vertical photography. These features were mapped and recorded as part of the Stockton and Darlington Railway Heritage Action Zone Aerial Investigation and Mapping project.
(3) |