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Summary

A rabbit bury or pillow mound of probable medieval to post-medieval date, one of several recorded as part of Trowlesworthy Warren, has been recorded as an earthwork bank by field and aerial survey on a south-west facing slope overlooking the Blacka Brook, to the south of Trowlesworthy Warren House. The mound is identifiable under vegetation on aerial photographs of 1946 and 1964, and remains visible as a subtle earthworks on digital images derived from aerial photographs of 2002 onwards and visualisations derived from lidar data captured between 1998 and 2017.

Location

Protected Status

• Scheduled Monument 1014614: Pillow mound 490m south of Trowlesworthy Warren House, forming part of Trowlesworthy Warren

Other References/Statuses

• Old DCC SMR Ref: SX56SE/198/76
• Old SAM Ref: 24238

Monument Type(s) and Dates

• PILLOW MOUND (Post Medieval to XIX - 1540 AD to 1900 AD (Between))

Full description

Haynes, R. G., Map of Trowlesworthy Warren (Cartographic). SDV165949.

Crossing, W., 1912 (1965), Crossing's Guide to Dartmoor, 431 (Monograph). SDV320981.

Royal Air Force, 1946, RAF/3G/TUD/UK/223, RAF/3G/TUD/UK/223 Vp2 5142-5143 12-JUL-1946 (Aerial Photograph). SDV352279.

A mound is identifiable under scrub vegetation.

Royal Air Force, 1946 - 1949, Royal Air Force Aerial Photographs (Aerial Photograph). SDV342938.

Mound is clearly visible on the aerial photography, at SX56622 64321.

Royal Air Force, 1964, RAF/58/6399, RAF/58/6399 F64 0384-0385 02-JUL-1964 (Aerial Photograph). SDV363068.

A mound is identifiable under scrub vegetation.

Mercer, R. J., 1987, An Archaeological Field Survey of the Upper Plym Valley, Dartmoor 1982-1986, 4 (Report - Survey). SDV165948.

Pillow mound. Subrectangular earthen mound surrounded by a ditch. Dimensions: length 28 metres by breadth 6 metres by height 0.80 metres.

Gerrard, S., 1990-2002, Monument Protection Programme. Archaeological Item Dataset., MPP 140330, 16/3/1995 (Report - Survey). SDV277946.

Part of Trowlesworthy Warren. Survives as a 28 metre by 6.5 metre by 1 metre high, flat-topped rectangular mound of soil and stone surrounded on four sides by 1.3 metre wide, 0.3 metre ditch from which construction material was quarried.
Lies on top of earlier tin streamworking spoil dumps, but no attempt appears to have been made to take advantage of this. Instead the pillow mound lies at an angle to the dumps, and therefore lies on top of at least four.

National Trust and English Heritage, 1994, The Upper Plym Valley: The Management of an Historic Landscape, 1 / 102.004 (Report - non-specific). SDV166309.

SX5666 6429. Pillow mound; sub-rectangular earthern mound, surrounded by a ditch. Length 28 metres, width 6 metres, 0.8 metres high.

Environment Agency, 1998-2017, LiDAR DTM data (1m resolution) EA: South Devon Coast to Dartmoor, LIDAR SX5664 Environment Agency DTM 01-JAN-1998 to 31-MAY-2017 (Cartographic). SDV361470.

A mound is identifiable as a subtle earthwork.

GetMapping, 1999 - 2000, Dartmoor 1999-2000 1:1250 Aerial Photography (digital) (Aerial Photograph). SDV345751.

This version of the aerial photography shows the mound in exactly the same location as the 1940s aerial photography.

Bluesky International Ltd/Getmapping PLC, 1999-2017, Pan Government Agreement Aerial Photographs, Next Perspectives APGB Imagery SX5664 03-MAY-2007 (Aerial Photograph). SDV363087.

A mound is identifiable as a subtle earthwork.

English Heritage, 2015, National Heritage List for England (National Heritage List for England). SDV357602.

Note: the polygon for the scheduling is located 40 metres to the south-east of the location of the mound, as plotted from the aerial photographs.

Hegarty, C., Knight, S. and Sims, R., 2019-2020, The South Devon Coast to Dartmoor Aerial Investigation and Mapping Survey. Area 2, Avon Valley to Plymouth (AI&M, formerly NMP) (Interpretation). SDV362982.

An oblong mound approximately 27m long and up to 7m wide is visible as an earthwork on aerial photographs of 1946 and 1964 on the south-west facing slope to the south of Trowlesworthy Warren House.
The mound is probably the remains of a rabbit bury or pillow mound of medieval to post-medieval date, one of several recorded as part of Trowlesworthy Warren (MDV14148).
No enclosing drainage ditch was identifiable from the sources available to the survey.
However, as noted by the above authority, the mound is located within an area of earlier streamworks and it is difficult to differentiate the mound from the underlying irregular earthworks.
The mound remains identifiable as a subtle earthwork on digital images derived from aerial photographs of 2007 and visualisations derived from lidar data captured between 1998 and 2017 and might have suffered some erosion or damage.

Sources / Further Reading

Associated Monuments

Associated Finds: none recorded

Associated Events

• EDV7369 - Survey of Granite Loading Bays at Trowlesworthy, Devon
• EDV8148 - The Upper Plym Valley: The Management of an Historic Landscape
• 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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