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Summary

A ruinous, flattened cairn with a central stone cist. Very disturbed and now comprises an amorphous spread of 6m maximum and only 0.3m high. A sheep path currently bisects this cairn. Several earthfast boulders are present within the cairn, of which six are visible above the turf, though if they represent vestiges of a kerb, then some or all are probably displaced. Surveyed in April 2022.

Location

Protected Status

• Scheduled Monument 1012473: Cairn with cist north of Gutter Tor

Other References/Statuses

• National Monuments Record: SX56NE39
• National Record of the Historic Environment: 438610
• Old DCC SMR Ref: SX56NE/144
• Old DCC SMR Ref: SX56NE/144/1
• Old SAM County Ref: 575
• Old SAM Ref: 10581

Monument Type(s) and Dates

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

Full description

Worth, R. N., 1940, 59th Report of the Barrow Committee, 63-4, Plan (Article in Serial). SDV216472.

Gutter Tor. A well formed kistvaen with both sides and ends are in place but the north end leans inwards. Originally the length was probably 838 millimetres. A ruined retaining circle of about 3.35 metres internal diameter; consisted of ten stones, two still standing. No coverstone. Early Bronze Age.

Ordnance Survey Archaeology Division, 1950, SX56NE39, Plan & Photographs (Ordnance Survey Archaeology Division Card). SDV216470.

(30/05/1950) A small kist set in a small cairn 3.8 metres diameter, height 0.2 metres. The present depth of the kist is 0.2 metres, the coverstone is missing. Ten stones are visible in the ruined retaining circle - two of which still stand.
(24/05/1977) A cairn with cist and a double circle of stones situated on the north-facing slope of Gutter Tor at about 305m OD. The end-stones and side-stones of the cist are in situ but the coverstone is missing.
Around the cist and extending to the perimeter of the cairn is a probable double circle of stones; the inner circle of approximately 2.5m diameter, the outer of 3.8m diameter. Most of the stones are flush with the ground, none are more than 0.1m above it. The height of the cairn is 0.4m and its diameter 4.8m.
Surveyed at 1:10 000 on PFD.

Birkett Dixon, C. E., 1952, 70th Report on Barrows, Offprint (Article in Serial). SDV165393.

Grinsell, L. V., 1978, Dartmoor Barrows, 166, Sheepstor 9 (Article in Serial). SDV273224.

Visited on 2nd February 1972.

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

Not visible on 1946 vertical aerial photographs.

Turner, J. R., 1990, Ring Cairns, Stone Circles and Related Monuments on Dartmoor, 76, E38 (Article in Serial). SDV229817.

Platform circle. Ring of kerb stones, 3.4 metres internal diameter, enclosing flat-topped cairn 0.25 metres high with central cist.

Butler, J., 1994, Dartmoor Atlas of Antiquities: Volume Three - The South-West, 118, Map 49, Figure 49.6 (Monograph). SDV137656.

Gutter Tor cairn '3' at SX57676712 of 4.0 metres diameter by 0.3 metres high with a central cist retaining all four sides. One end slab leans inwards shortening the cist and the few stones of the spaced retaining circle show around the edge of the mound.

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

(16/02/2005) This feature remains as described by the Ordnance Survey (1977) and is in a stable condition.

Various, 2018-2020, PALs Condition Recording forms, UPRM-21 (Worksheet). SDV362781.

(29/01/2020) Condition assessed by volunteer recorders as good, although dense reeds are partially obscuring this cairn. South and west side stones are noted as in situ; could not locate north and east side stones.

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

Cairn photographed during January 2020 visit.

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

'Cairn & Cist' shown on modern mapping.

Historic England, 2021, National Heritage List for England, 1012473 (National Heritage List for England). SDV364016.

This cairn with a cist lies in heavy bracken approximately 250 metres north of the outcrops of Gutter Tor, the cairn is 5 metres in diameter and 0.4 metres in height with traces of two retaining kerbs. The cist, which is orientated approximately north-east/south west, has both side and both end slabs but the capstone is missing. The side slabs are up to 1.3 metres in length, but the end slabs are set to enclose a space only 0.9 metres in length, with the side slabs extending beyond one end slab. It lies approximately 100 metres south-east of an enclosure and within 300 metres of several other cairns.

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

A ruinous cairn with central cist on northern slope of Gutter Tor SX 57674 67128. A ruinous, flattened cairn with a central stone cist. All sides of the cist are present, made from granite slabs, though the northern slab is leaning inwards. The likely original internal dimensions were 0.91m by 0.52m. The capstone is no longer present. The cairn is very disturbed and now comprises an amorphous spread of 6m maximum and only 0.3m high. A sheep path currently bisects this cairn. Several earthfast boulders are present within the cairn, of which six are visible above the turf, though if they represent vestiges of a kerb, then some or all are probably displaced. Surveyed at 1:100 scale using GPS, 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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