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Summary

A cairn within a retaining circle which forms the southern terminal of the Ringmoor Down stone row. The site was restored in 1909, somewhat inaccurately according to R.H. Worth. Barely any substance of the cairn survives, other than a lightly raised area with a spread of 10.3m, and a small crescent of earth near its southern centre. According to Worth, only one stone of the retaining circle survived in situ prior to restoration, so of the 11 now standing, four were re-erected and six imported from elsewhere. The diameter is 12.47m and the tallest stone is 0.92m. Surveyed in April 2022.

Location

Protected Status

• Scheduled Monument 1012246: Stone alignment and terminal cairn with a retaining kerb on Ringmoor Down

Other References/Statuses

• National Monuments Record: SX56NE60
• National Record of the Historic Environment: 438671
• Old DCC SMR Ref: SX56NE/8/1
• Old SAM County Ref: 569
• Old SAM Ref: 10596

Monument Type(s) and Dates

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

Full description

Worth, R. H., 1941, 60th Report on Barrows, 234-5 (Article in Serial). SDV302703.

Worth, R. H., 1941, Retaining Circles Associated with Stone Rows, Dartmoor, 238 (Article in Serial). SDV251083.

Ringmoor 10.3 metres diameter retaining circle at south end of row. Restored in 1909. Plan of original circle was one standing stone, four fallen stones and six pits in the surface soil which may have had stones. There are ten standing stones now in circle.

Ordnance Survey Archaeology Division, 1950/1979, SX56NE60, Plan (Ordnance Survey Archaeology Division Card). SDV260547.

(25/05/1950) The cairn circle measures approximately 12.6 metres in diameter and has 11 stones averaging 0.7 metres high. The disturbed central cairn is 9.5 metres in diameter and 0.4 metres high. The row, double in part, extends 356 metres north from the cairn circle to one stone beyond Worth's small menhir. None of the slab or pillar-shaped stones exceed 1.0 metres in height, the majority being quite small and just protruding from the turf with many stones apparently missing. Consequently there is no observable regular spacing between the stones. The nearby longhouse settlements and their associated field banks no doubt partly account for the robbing of the row.
This 'restored' stone circle surrounds the remains of a barrow, approximately 0.2 metres high.
(15/03/1979) On a west facing slope of Ringmoor Down at 293m OD. is a stone row at the higher southern end of which is a cairn surrounded by a restored circle of stones.
The cairn circle measures approximately 12.6m in diameter and has eleven stones averaging 0.7m high (see ground photograph). The disturbed central cairn is 9.5m in diameter and 0.4m in height.
Surveyed at 1:10 000 and at 1:000 for AO records.

Thom, Alexander, 1967, Megalithic Sites in Britain, 140, Site S 2/4 (Monograph). SDV260545.

The perimeter circle has been re-surveyed by Professor Thom. (See illus card 5)

National Monuments Record, 1977, SX5662, 2, 148-152 (Aerial Photograph). SDV260548.

Photographs taken on 20th May 1977.

Grinsell, L. V., 1978, Dartmoor Barrows, 167, Sheepstor 19 (Article in Serial). SDV273224.

Visited on 28th July 1972. Cairn within retaining circle 12.0 metres in diameter (restored), from which stone row extends over undulating ground to north-north-east. Diameter 10.0 metres, height 0.2 metres.

Balaam, N. D. + Smith, K. + Wainwright, G. J., 1982, Ringmoor Down, 255 (Article in Serial). SDV260549.

Eleven stones forming circle 13 metres diameter around an eroded mound or cairn.

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

Recorded on aerial photograph.

Turner, J. R., 1990, Ring Cairns, Stone Circles and Related Monuments on Dartmoor, 54, 78, F5 (Article in Serial). SDV229817.

Ring of orthostats 12.4 metres internal diameter around cairn of 7.5 metres diameter and 0.2 metres high.

Butler, J., 1994, Dartmoor Atlas of Antiquities: Volume Three - The South-West, 142-3, Map 49, Figure 49.20 & 49.20.1 (Monograph). SDV137656.

Ringmoor Down stone row cairn at SX56326580 of 12.7 metres diameter by 0.1 metres high. Only one stone remained standing before restoration in 1911, four others were lying approximately in position and socket holes were visible for six more, probably the original total. Five or six stones were 'imported' from the surrounding moorland. The circle of 12.7 metres diameter stands well outside the cairn of 7.5 metres diameter by 0.2 metres high, a horse-shoe shaped mound dug into at the centre.

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

(16/02/2005) These features remain as described by the Ordnance Survey in 1979.
The stone circle is somewhat unusual for Dartmoor and may be an affectation those carrying out the reconstruction.

Bluesky International Ltd/Getmapping PLC, 2015-2017, 2015-2017 Aerial Photographs (Aerial Photograph). SDV361462.

Restored circle clearly visible on aerial photograph.

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

'Cairn' shown on modern mapping.

Historic England, 2021, National Heritage List for England, 1012246 (National Heritage List for England). SDV364016.

The Ringmoor Down alignment has a double row of stones 337 metres in length with a cairn and retaining kerb at the south-western end. The cairn is 7 metres in diameter and 0.4 metres in height and is surrounded by a retaining kerb 12.9 metres in diameter. The retaining kerb was restored by Baring-Gould in 1909. Prior to this, one stone remained standing and four were fallen, while sockets for a further six were recorded. There are now ten standing stones, the original one is 0.7 metres in height, the restored and imported stones stand up to 0.9 metres in height.

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

Cairn Circle which forms the terminal of Ringmoor Down stone row. SX 56333 65798. A cairn within a retaining circle which forms the southern terminal of the Ringmoor Down stone row. The site was restored in 1909, somewhat inaccurately according to R.H. Worth.
Barely any substance of the cairn survives, other than a lightly raised area with a spread of 10.3m, and a small crescent of earth near its southern centre. According to Worth, only one stone of the retaining circle survived in situ prior to restoration, so of the 11 now standing, four were re-erected and six imported from elsewhere. The diameter is 12.47m and the tallest stone is 0.92m . Surveyed at 1:200 using GPS 4 April 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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