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Summary

A roughly pentagonal bank defined hut circle enclosure of probable Bronze Age date is recorded from field investigation and aerial survey on the north-facing slopes of Shaugh Moor. The banks define an internal area circa 25m by 17m across. Two hut circles are recorded integrated into the enclosure bank. The earthworks are visible on aerial photographs of 1946 and 1964, digital images derived from aerial photographs of 2016 and are identifiable as earthworks on visualisations derived from low resolution lidar data captured in 2013.

Location

Protected Status

• Scheduled Monument 1002517: Pounds and hut circles N of Saddlesborough

Other References/Statuses

• National Monuments Record: SX56SE90
• National Record of the Historic Environment: 439364
• Old DCC SMR Ref: SX56SE/168
• Old SAM County Ref: 428

Monument Type(s) and Dates

• ENCLOSURE (Constructed, Bronze Age - 2200 BC (Between) to 701 BC (Between))

Full description

Royal Air Force, 1946, RAF/3G/TUD/UK/223, RAF/3G/TUD/UK/223 Vp 2 5140-5141 12-JUL-1946 (Aerial Photograph). SDV352279.

Linear banks are visible as earthworks.

Royal Air Force, 1946, RAF/CPE/UK/1890, 2299 (Aerial Photograph). SDV169268.

Royal Air Force, 1964, RAF/58/6399, RAF/58/6399 F64 0382-0383 02-JUL-1964 (Aerial Photograph). SDV363068.

Linear banks are visible as earthworks.

Price, D. G., 1973, Ancient fields on Shaugh Moor, 89 (Article in Serial). SDV147593.

A pound and four hut circles outside the pound. (Site visited during 1972) Other details: Plan.

Ordnance Survey Archaeology Division, 1980, SX56SE90 (Ordnance Survey Archaeology Division Card). SDV152508.

(02/09/1980) The enclosure, centred at SX 55606347, is somewhat angular in plan, but broadly as described by Smith (1980), with rubble walling 2.0m. wide and 0.6m. high.
Of the four free-standing huts, A, C and D (see plan with SX 56 SE 91) are of Type 2 (SX 56 NE 71).
The internal diameter range from 4.7m. to 5.0m. with walling from 1.3m. to 1.7m. wide and 0.5m. high. Gaps and possible entrances occur on the E., N., and S. Hut 'B' appears to be of Type 1 (SX 56 SE 19), levelled into the slope, with an internal diameter of 2.4m. and rubble walling 1.0m. wide and 0.3m. high.
Surveyed at 1:2500 on M.S.D.

Smith, K., 1980, Typescript notes and plan of Shaugh Moor (Un-published). SDV138646.

An enclosure which is an irregular oval in plan, 25m from east to west and 17m from north to south. It is on a marked north-facing slope and the bank is ill-defined. The interior is characteristically cleared of stone save for some earth-fast boulders. Soil has built up within the enclosure against the inner edge of the downslope wall. There is no undoubted entrance and a single extremely ruinous hut can be seen in the north-west corner of the enclosure.
A small ruinous hut south of enclosure, 8.00m in overall diameter from west to east. A single vertical liner is visible and the apparent entrance appears to be orientated south-east.
A substantial isolated hut 40m south-west of enclosure. It is terraced into the side of the hill and is Approximately 5.00m in internal diameter. The sporadic stones of internal wall-liners can be seen but the entrance is not apparent.
Of the two huts to the east the nearest to the enclosure is a ruinous hut 5.00m. in internal diameter terraced into the hillside. The wall is obscured by vegetation and no entrance is apparent. The second is a well preserved and substantial hut 5.00m. in diameter with the internal liners sporadically preserved and a south-orientated entrance.

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

Ovoid feature visible with one hut circle outside to the south-west.

Butler, J., 1994, Dartmoor Atlas of Antiquities: Volume Three - The South-West, 99-101, Map 48, Figure 48.3 (Monograph). SDV137656.

Enclosure F; one of seven enclosures with associated hut circles in the area. This enclosure has one integrated hut circles and one just outside the walls to the south-west. Two more circles are located to the east of the enclosure, while there is a further isolated circle further to the south-west of this enclosure. It has been damaged through stone robbing.

Fletcher, M. + Probert, S., 1998, Shaugh Moor, Devon: An Archaeological Survey (Report - Survey). SDV343481.

(Visited 02/12/1997) Centred at SX55606348. A small enclosure situated on a north-facing hillslope. The boulder and stone walling which has been robbed is on the downhill side 3.4 metres wide and a maximum 0.7 metres high and elsewhere it is spread to 7.2 metres wide and is 0.6 metres high. Two hut circles are incorporated into the walls and four huts lie in a row to the north.

Bluesky International Ltd/Getmapping PLC, 1999-2017, Pan Government Agreement Aerial Photographs, Next Perspectives APGB Imagery SX5563 31-MAY-2016 (Aerial Photograph). SDV363087.

Linear banks are visible as earthworks.

NERC, 2013, LiDAR DTM data (1m resolution) Tellus: South Devon to Dartmoor, LIDAR SX5563 Tellus DTM 01-JUL-2013 to 31-AUG-2013 (Cartographic). SDV361514.

Linear banks are identifiable as fragmentary earthworks.

Various, 2018-2020, PALs Condition Recording forms, SM-37 (Worksheet). SDV362781.

Visited 02/10/2019. Site description is moderate, however the boundary banks are 100% covered in bracken and the interior has scattered low height western gorse and grass, does not appear to be grazed. Overall condition good. Photo taken.

Various, 2018-2020, PALs Condition Recording photographs, SM-37 (Photograph). SDV363073.

North east corner of enclosure looking west.

Hegarty, C., Knight, S. and Sims, R., 2019-2021, The South Devon Coast to Dartmoor Aerial Investigation and Mapping Survey. Area 2, Avon Valley to Plymouth (AI&M, formerly NMP) (Interpretation). SDV362982.

Earthwork banks measuring up to circa 3.75m wide are visible on aerial photographs of 1946, 1964 and digital images derived from aerial photographs of 2016, defining a flattened trapezoidal enclosure with an internal area circa 25m by 17m across.
The enclosure is interpreted as probably the remains of a settlement of Bronze Age date.
A break across the south-east facing bank circa 4.5m wide might be evidence of an entrance.
No evidence of hut circles incorporated into the bank was convincingly identified, but an area of spread bank on the north-west side of the enclosure might contain evidence not apparent from the aerial photographic evidence available to the survey. A probable hut circle was identified circa 2m to the south-west (MDV125924).
The enclosure banks are identifiable as fragmentary earthworks on visualisations derived from low resolution lidar data captured in 2013.

Sources / Further Reading

Associated Monuments

Associated Finds: none recorded

Associated Events

• EDV4967 - Shaugh Moor Survey (1997-1998)
• EDV8098 - The South Devon Coast to Dartmoor Aerial Investigation and Mapping (formerly NMP) Survey, Area 2, Avon Valley to Plymouth (Ref: ACD2040)

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