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Summary

A small ruinous round cairn SE of Legis Tor, containing a disturbed cist. The approximately circular cairn is disturbed and spread up to 3.5m diameter but stands less than 0.3m high. Only the northern side and western narrow end of the cist remains in situ and the internal dimensions may have been 0.75m by 0.45m. Some earthfast randomly placed stones within the mound may be displaced components of a former kerb. Last surveyed March 2022.

Location

Protected Status

• Scheduled Monument 1019876: Prehistoric settlement, three round cairns and a post-medieval rabbit warren at Legis Tor

Other References/Statuses

• National Monuments Record: SX56NE66
• National Record of the Historic Environment: 438689
• Old DCC SMR Ref: SX56NE/120
• Old SAM County Ref: 10590
• Old SAM Ref: 22289

Monument Type(s) and Dates

• CAIRN (Constructed, Early Neolithic to Late Bronze Age - 4000 BC to 701 BC)
• CIST (Constructed, Bronze Age - 2200 BC (Between) to 701 BC (Between))

Full description

Worth, R. H., 1902, 21st Report of the Barrow Committee, 112, 134, 138 (Article in Serial). SDV20971.

Worth, R. H., 1932, 51st Report of the Barrow Committee, 117, plate 11, figs.4,5 (Article in Serial). SDV251255.

A cist 400 yards due east of Legis Tor. One side and one end stone are in position, the other side stone has fallen, the other end stone and cover stone are missing. The original internal measurements were about 2 feet 2 inches by 1 foot 7 inches. The remains of the barrow are still clear and there has been a retaining circle of about 12 feet internal diameter.

Ordnance Survey Archaeology Division, 1950, SX56NE66, plan (Ordnance Survey Archaeology Division Card). SDV252489.

(31/05/1950) Kistvaen (remains of) Worth's description (1934) is correct. The barrow is 3.6m in diameter and 0.2m high. Seven possible stones, all fallen, of the retaining circle remain.

Ordnance Survey Archaeology Division, 1977, SX56NE66, plan (Ordnance Survey Archaeology Division Card). SDV363485.

(20/06/1977) At SX 5747 6554 is a cairn with kerb and cist situated on an east facing slope at 295m OD in a false crest position. The cairn is 3.5m in diameter overall and 0.6m high. Seven irregular shaped stones are visible as part of the kerb within the cairn.
The cist lies in an east-west direction along its main axis and is 1.1m long, 0.6m wide and 0.2m deep and has one of its four stones recumbent. No capstone is visible. Surveyed 1:10 000 on PFD.

Grinsell, L. V., 1978, Dartmoor Barrows, 167/ Sheepstor 23 (Article in Serial). SDV273224.

(29/7/1972) Cairn with retaining circle enclosing cist placed east-south-east by west-north-west. Diameter 4.0m, height 0.3m.

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

Not visible 1946 on the 1940s Royal Air Force verticals.

Turner, J. R., 1990, Ring Cairns, Stone Circles and Related Monuments on Dartmoor, 76/E42 (Article in Serial). SDV229817.

Platform circle. Ring of kerb stones, 3m internal diameter, enclosing flat-topped cairn 0.4m high with central cist.

Gerrard, S., 1990-2002, Monument Protection Programme. Archaeological Item Dataset., MPP 130884 (Report - Survey). SDV277946.

(22/2/1993) Round cairn mound measures 4m in diameter and stands up to 0.6m high. A cist orientated north-west by south-east measures 0.6m long by 0.5m wide and 0.4m deep. One side and one end of the cist are in situ, the other side slab has fallen and the other end and the capstone are missing. A small number of stones set on edge around the perimeter of the mound indicates the presence of a kerb which survives partly as a buried feature.

Butler, J., 1994, Dartmoor Atlas of Antiquities: Volume Three - The South-West, 111-4, Map 49, Figure 49.1 & 49.2.1 (Monograph). SDV137656.

Legis Tor E cairn '1' at SX57486553 of 3.5 metres diameter by 0.3 metres high with a cist. Four or five stones of the retaining circle remain standing as well as one side and an end slab of the cist. The other sides are probably present but displaced. The south side stone is lying flat and partly buried to the south and the west end stone leaning far back with just the top showing above the ground.

Probert, S., 2005, Ringmoor Training Area: Monument Baseline Condition Survey (Report - Survey). SDV363484.

(18/02/2005) SX 5749 6554. This feature is generally as described by the Ordnance Survey (1977) though the 'recumbent' cist stone appears to be the coverstone embedded in spoil on the southern edge of the cairn.

Probert, S. A. J., 2010, A Condition Survey of the Archaeological Sites of Ringmoor, Dartmoor Training Area (Report - Survey). SDV360517.

Newman, P., 2018, Archaeological Sites within Ringmoor Training Area, Dartmoor National Park, Devon: A condition survey on behalf of Defence Infrastructure Organisation (Report - Survey). SDV361636.

(05/12/2017) SX 57485 65542 A small turf covered cairn with vestiges of a central cist on the southern slope of Legis Tor. Condition good; monument stable.

Various, 2018-2020, PALs Condition Recording forms, UPRM-25 (Worksheet). SDV362781.

(02/03/2020) Condition of site assessed as good; medium vegetation encroachment (some bracken) is affecting the site.

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

Photographs taken during March 2020 visit.

Ordnance Survey, 2021, MasterMap 2021 (Cartographic). SDV364015.

Northern of two 'Cairns' shown on modern mapping.

Historic England, 2021, National Heritage List for England, 1019876 (National Heritage List for England). SDV364016.

On the hillslope above the eastern part of the settlement are three round cairns. The perimeters of all three mounds are denoted in places by stones set on edge, which indicate the presence of kerbs which survive partly as buried features. The eastern mound measures 4 metres in diameter and stands up to 0.6 metres high. It contains a cist orientated north west to south east which measures 0.6 metres long by 0.5 metres wide and 0.4 metres deep. One side and one end of the cist are in situ, the other side slab has fallen and the other end slab and the capstone are missing.

Newman, P., 2022, Ringmoor Down Premier Archaeological Landscape Dartmoor National Park, Devon. A new survey, Table 1 (Report - Survey). SDV365490.

A small ruinous round cairn SE of Legis Tor, containing a disturbed cist. SX 57486 65542. A small ruinous round cairn SE of Legis Tor, containing a disturbed cist. The approximately circular cairn is disturbed and spread up to 3.5m diameter but stands less than 0.3m high. Only the northern side and western narrow end of the cist remains in situ and the internal dimensions may have been 0.75m by 0.45m. Some earthfast randomly placed stones within the mound may be displaced components of a former kerb. Surveyed at 1:100 scale using GPS, 23 March 2022.

Sources / Further Reading

Associated Monuments

Associated Finds: none recorded

Associated Events

• EDV7443 - Condition survey of archaeological sites in Ringmoor Training Area
• EDV7569 - Condition survey of Ringmoor Down training area
• EDV8227 - Ringmoor Training Area: Monument Baseline Condition Survey
• EDV8917 - Survey of the archaeological features on Ringmoor Down

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