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Summary

Cairn with two conjoined cists at the western end of a triple stone row on the eastern side of Cawsand Hill (also known as Cosdon Hill) at the head of Cheriton Combe. The cairn lies 4.5m west of the blocking stones and survives as a circular mound measuring 7.8m in diameter and standing up to 0.7m high. Seven stones set on edge around the perimeter of the mound, indicate the presence of a kerb which survives largely as a buried feature. Two conjoined cists sharing a common end slab are visible within the mound. This cairn was excavated by the Dartmoor Exploration Committee in 1896, who found that the cists had already been robbed and no finds were made. The excavators, however, did find an inner kerb of upright slabs within the mound surrounding the cists, although this feature is no longer visible.

Location

Protected Status

• Scheduled Monument 1013426: Triple stone alignment and cairn 780m east of Cawsand Beacon

Other References/Statuses

• National Monuments Record
• Old DCC SMR Ref: SX69SW/19/1
• Old SAM County Ref: 784
• Old SAM Ref: 24143
• Pastscape: 444168

Monument Type(s) and Dates

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

Full description

Worth, R. N., 1892, The Stone Rows of Dartmoor, 392-394 (Article in Serial). SDV237176.

Worth suggests that two phases are represented: one row for the standing stone, two rows for the cairn. He refers to retaining circles for both elements, and suggests that each had at least two circles.

Baring Gould, S., 1896, Third Report of the Dartmoor Exploration Committee, 180 (Article in Serial). SDV260468.

Falcon, T. A., 1905, Dartmoor: A Note on Graves, 458 (Article in Serial). SDV255372.

Brailsford, J. W., 1938, Bronze Age Stone Monuments of Dartmoor, 451, 448, plan (Article in Serial). SDV304210.

Cairn contains a double cist with traces of a third burial.

Worth, R. H., 1946, The Stone Rows of Dartmoor. Part 1, 300-301 (Article in Serial). SDV251172.

There is a cairn (diameter 7.92 metres) at the western end of the stone alignment containing the remains of two kistvaens. The retaining circle is very irregular.

Ordnance Survey Archaeology Division, 1950-1952, SX69SW17, 9/8/1950 (Ordnance Survey Archaeology Division Card). SDV224255.

The accounts by Worth are correct.
The cairn has been badly mutilated and there are only three stones of the retaining circle visible. The cists have also been mutilated. The western most consisting of side stone (the south-west) and on end stone which is also common to the second cist. The second cist appears to be intact but it is covered by the capstone which makes accurate measurement impossible. The capstone is roughly rectangular (9/8/1950).

Grinsell, L. V., 1953, The Ancient Burial-Mounds of England, 130 (Monograph). SDV223394.

National Monument Record, 1977, NMR SX6492, 1 (Aerial Photograph). SDV224262.

Grinsell, L. V., 1978, Dartmoor Barrows, 169, South Tawton 5 (Article in Serial). SDV273224.

(30/5/1976) Cairn enclosing bipartite cist with common central slab. Placed south-east by north-west; one capstone in place. From the cairn a triple stone row descends to east. Diameter 6.5 metres, height 0.5 metres.

Emmett, D. D., 1979, Stone Rows: The Traditional View Reconsidered, 107, 111 (Article in Serial). SDV251087.

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

Visible on 1977 aerial photograph and recorded on map overlay.

Turner, J. R., 1990, Ring Cairns, Stone Circles and Related Monuments on Dartmoor, 74 (Article in Serial). SDV229817.

Platform circle. Ring of kerb stones, 5.8 metres in diameter internally, enclosing a flat-topped cairn 0.3 metres high. Two central cists sharing one side stone.

Gerrard, S., 1990-2002, Monument Protection Programme. Archaeological Item Dataset., MPP 133296, 17/1/1994 (Report - Survey). SDV277946.

Cairn at western end of stone alignment. Survives as a circular mound measuring 7.8 metres in diameter and standing up to 0.7 metres high. There are seven stones set on edge around the perimeter of the mound, indicating the presence of a kerb which survives largely as a buried feature. Two conjoined cists sharing a common end slab are visible within the mound.
The northern cist includes one end and a side slab defining a rectangular hollow measuring 1.2 metres long by 0.9 metres wide and 0.5 metres deep.
The southern cist includes three upright slabs obscured in part by a large granite slab which probably represents an original coverstone. This cist appears to have maximum dimensions of 1.1 metres by 1 metre by 0.4 metres deep. Excavated by the Dartmoor Exploration Committee in 1896, who found that the cists had already been robbed and no finds were made. The excavators, however, did find an inner kerb of upright slabs within the mound surrounding the cists, although this feature is no longer visible.

Butler, J., 1991, Dartmoor Atlas of Antiquities: Volume Two - The North, 206, 244, Map 40, Figure 40.6 (Monograph). SDV219155.

Cosdon Hill Stone Row cairn at SX64329159 of 7.0 metres diameter by 0.3 metres high with a cist. The stone rows end at a ruined cairn, unusual in that it contains a pair of cists sharing a common end slab. Two slabs only remain of one of these but the components of the other are all present, including the cover slab. Five stones of an outer retaining circle surround the mound but little is to be seen of the inner ring reported by the Dartmoor Exploration Committee in 1896. They excavated what was left of the cists which had been exposed on the surface and found them apparently previously dug into. No finds were made.

Ordnance Survey, 2017, MasterMap (Cartographic). SDV359962.

Cist is depicted on the modern mapping.

Historic England, 2017, National Heritage List for England, 1013426 (National Heritage List for England). SDV359963.

This monument includes a triple stone alignment, a cairn and short length of hollow way situated on a gently sloping natural shelf on the eastern side of Cawsand Hill (also known as Cosdon Hill) at the head of Cheriton Combe.
The cairn lies 4.5m west of the blocking stones and survives as a circular mound measuring 7.8m in diameter and standing up to 0.7m high. Seven stones set on edge around the perimeter of the mound, indicate the presence of a kerb which survives largely as a buried feature. Two conjoined cists sharing a common end slab are visible within the mound. The northern cist includes one end and a side slab defining a rectangular hollow measuring 1.2m long by 0.9m wide and 0.5m deep. The southern cist includes three upright slabs obscured in part by a large granite slab which probably represents an original coverstone. This cist appears to have maximum dimensions of 1.1m long by 1m wide and 0.4m deep. This cairn was excavated by the Dartmoor Exploration Committee in 1896, who found that the cists had already been robbed and no finds were made. The excavators, however, did find an inner kerb of upright slabs within the mound surrounding the cists, although this feature is no longer visible.

Sources / Further Reading

Associated Monuments

Associated Finds: none recorded

Associated Events

• EDV8542 - Excavation of cairn Whitemoorstone Down, Cosdon
• EDV8887 - Magnetometer and resistance survey at Cosdon Beacon triple stone row (Ref: 2010DAR(D)-R-1)

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