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Summary

Geophysical survey recorded a group anomaly which may possibly be the remnants of a former boundary of unknown date.

Location

Protected Status

• Scheduled Monument 1018850: Hembury Fort
• Scheduled Monument 1018850: Hembury Fort

Other References/Statuses: none recorded

Monument Type(s) and Dates

• BOUNDARY? (Unknown date)

Full description

West Air Photography, 1970, WAP 16169 (Aerial Photograph). SDV359936.

A slight curvilinear earthwork scarp or bank was visible south-west of the excavated ditches, but was not transcribeable.

Environment Agency, 1998-2014, LiDAR DTM data (1m resolution) (Cartographic). SDV359177.

A broad but shallow curvilinear ditch was visible to the south-west of the excavated ditches. Map object based partly on this source.

Griffith, F. M. + Wilkes, E. M., 2015, Hembury, Payhembury Fort, Devon: Geophysical Survey (Report - Geophysical Survey). SDV360845.

Hembury (Payhembury) Fort is considered to be the most westerly of the ‘Wessex style’ multivallate hillforts of the first millennium BC, with earlier occupation, demonstrated through excavations in the 1930s and 1980s, as a Neolithic causewayed enclosure, and with subsequent Roman military use. It occupies a spur of Upper Greensand overlooking the Otter valley and river Tale tributary at ST 11255 03080. The non-intrusive evaluation was designed to determine the viability of two geophysical survey techniques prior to a full-scale survey. The hilltop had recently been partially cleared of dense undergrowth and trees had been thinned, so affording the first opportunity for area surveys to be conducted. Anomalies detected within the interior of the monument conform to what is known from upstanding remains and earlier reports from excavations within the hillfort as well as anomalies that may represent previously unknown archaeological features.

Approximately 38 metres south of anomaly G, the southern central bank, anomaly H is a linear feature, running NW - SE, detected for 47 metres; the ends of the anomaly were outside the sampled area. The edges of the area are not sharp but this area had only very recently been partially cleared of trees and bracken so sub-surface deposits may well have been disturbed by past vegetation growth. This anomaly aligns with a break in the terrain as the land drops down sharply by approximately 0.5 metres at the north of this line. It is possible that it represents another ditch, of unknown date and previously unrecorded, possibly forming an inner boundary within the monument.

Griffith, F. M. + Wilkes, E. M., 2016, Hembury, Payhembury Fort, Devon: Geophysical Survey (Report - Geophysical Survey). SDV360861.

A sample survey to explore the potential of two geophysical survey techniques at Hembury Fort was conducted by this team in May 2015. This confirmed the usefulness of both magnetic gradiometry and earth resistance techniques within the hillfort. Vegetation clearance at the time of that survey had opened up some areas of the interior for survey, but much of it, particularly in the southern half of the site, remained inaccessible. A further survey was undertaken in 2016 when conditions were more favourable.

Approximately 38 metres south of anomaly G (the southern central bank) anomaly H is a curvilinear feature, running NW ‐ SE, detected for circa 70 metres (compared to 47 metres in 2015) across the width of the interior of the hillfort. The edges of the anomaly are not sharp but this area had been partially cleared of trees and bracken in 2015, and fully cleared by the time of the 2016 survey. Sub‐surface deposits may well have been disturbed by past vegetation growth. This anomaly aligns with a break in the terrain as the land drops down sharply by approximately 0.5 metres to the north of this line. The continuity of this feature recorded in this survey now more strongly suggests it is another ditch, of unknown date (unrecorded prior to the 2015 survey) possibly forming an inner boundary within the monument and this result should be considered to be of high archaeological significance.

Anomaly H was actually cut by Liddell's Cutting I at H1. This cutting was excavated in 1930 to determine the nature of a bank, initially considered to be a hut platform but suggested by excavation to be upcast from a stone quarry (Liddell 1930, 49). The location of the cutting could be discerned on the ground in both 2015 and 2016 and the results of this survey strongly suggest that Liddell's cutting partially excavated a previously unrecognised bank and ditch running across the width of the interior of the monument, possibly exploiting a slight topographical feature. It is notable that it is concentric with anomaly X, a major feature identified in Liddell's excavation and interpreted as the outer ditch of the Neolithic causewayed enclosure, and may also relate to anomaly Y.

In advance of this survey, Environment Agency LiDaR data was reviewed (Figure 6); following the survey it became clear that the line of anomaly H showed as an area of lower ground. The NMP survey confirmed the LiDaR observation later in 2016 (W Horner pers comm 2016).

Hegarty, C. + Knight, S. + Sims, R., 2016-2018, The Blackdown Hills AONB and East Devon River Catchments National Mapping Programme Project (Interpretation). SDV359463.

A broad but shallow curvilinear ditch was clearly visible as an earthwork on digital images derived from lidar data captured between 1998 and 2014, within the enclosed area of Hembury Fort, approximately 120 metres from the southern tip of the enclosure. The earthwork was between circa 30 to 50 metres to the south of the known location of the excavated interrupted ditches of the Neolithic causewayed enclosure. Although not precisely on the same alignment and more continuous than the interrupted ditches (MDV112692), the visible ditch is tentatively interpreted as an inner circuit of the causewayed enclosure. Alternatively, it may be evidence of a separate phase of activity, such as a possible henge enclosure. A similar association has been recorded within the causewayed enclosure at Dallington, Northamptonshire. The ditch might also be visible as a slight earthwork on aerial photographs of 1970.

Sources / Further Reading

SDV359177	Cartographic: Environment Agency. 1998-2014. LiDAR DTM data (1m resolution). Environment Agency LiDAR data. Digital.
SDV359463	Interpretation: Hegarty, C. + Knight, S. + Sims, R.. 2016-2018. The Blackdown Hills AONB and East Devon River Catchments National Mapping Programme Project. Historic England Research Report. Digital.
	Linked documents:2
SDV359936	Aerial Photograph: West Air Photography. 1970. WAP 16169. West Air Photography.
SDV360845	Report - Geophysical Survey: Griffith, F. M. + Wilkes, E. M.. 2015. Hembury, Payhembury Fort, Devon: Geophysical Survey. Digital. [Mapped feature: #111976 ]
SDV360861	Report - Geophysical Survey: Griffith, F. M. + Wilkes, E. M.. 2016. Hembury, Payhembury Fort, Devon: Geophysical Survey. Digital.

Associated Monuments: none recorded

Associated Finds: none recorded

Associated Events

• EDV7503 - Geophysical Survey: Hembury, Payhembury Fort, Devon
• EDV7504 - Geophysical Survey; Hembury, Payhembury Fort, Devon

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