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Summary

Adjoins field known as 'Warren Down', these fields together contain at least eight or nine pillow mounds for breeding rabbits which became popular from the medieval period onwards. This site is on the local list of Nationally Important Dartmoor sites.

Location

Protected Status

• SHINE: Earthworks and walls of a Bronze Age circular enclosure containing two hut circles, Yalland Medieval Rabbit Warren and two medieval longhouses at Shipley Tor

Other References/Statuses

• Dartmoor Non-designated Heritage Asset (Evidential): NI Site
• National Monuments Record: SX66SE70
• National Record of the Historic Environment: 441977
• Old DCC SMR Ref: SX66SE/246/1

Monument Type(s) and Dates

• RABBIT WARREN (Post Medieval to Early 20th Century - 1540 AD (Between) to 1901 AD (Between))

Full description

Royal Air Force, 1946, CPE/UK 1890, 2278 (Aerial Photograph). SDV140289.

Royal Air Force, 1948, RAF/CPE/UK/2494, 4042-4043 (Aerial Photograph). SDV147533.

Haynes, R. G., 1960, Warrens of Dartmoor (Un-published). SDV355679.

The warren is mentioned in 1780. One pillow mound is adjacent to the medieval site, one is in the prehistoric enclosure and there are vague mounds in the field to the west.

Linehan, C. D., 1966, Deserted Sites and Rabbit-Warrens on Dartmoor, Devon, Table 3 (Article in Serial). SDV307246.

Linehan notes six pillow mounds.

Ordnance Survey Archaeology Division, 1977, SX66SE70, plan (Ordnance Survey Archaeology Division Card). SDV161747.

(16/12/1977) On the slopes of Yalland Warren there are eight pillow mounds, widely - spaced over an area of 450 metres by 150 metres.
They vary considerably in size, from a length of 25 metres (at SX69006320) to only 6.0 metres (at SX68596306). Their average width is 5.7 metres and their average height 1.1 metres. They are all ditched and three of them are revetted with stones; all have their main axis up and down the slope. The mound at SX69016315 is L-shaped, having an extension of 15.0 metres at its upper end. At SX69026322 is a rectangular depression 17.0 metres by 4.7 metres overall, with depth of 0.6 metres, which is the supposed site of a Medieval longhouse. There is no trace of any walling. Between this site and the nearby pillow mound there is another, amorphous depression approximately
8.0 metres by 4.5 metres, again with no trace of walling.
Surveyed at 1:10 000.

Robinson, R., 1977, Yalland Warren and Warren Down (Worksheet). SDV162052.

Visited during October 1977. "Warren Down", adjacent to Yalland Warren. Contains several smaller and more ruinous buries than in Yalland Warren. The air photographs show the Warren Down buries indistinctly. Other details: Sketch included..

Robinson, R., 1980, An Archaeological Check-List for South Brent, Sketch (Report - non-specific). SDV150007.

(Visited in October 1977) Yallan Warren is first named in the Marley map book 'maps of lands belonging to Walter Palk Esquire' where 'Warren' is inscribed in field centred at SX689632. The tithe map 1843 gives the name of this field as Yalland Warren and the one to the west of it centred at SX689632 as warren down. Both contain rabbit buries or pillow mounds those in Yalland warren being larger and less weathered than those in Warren down. Yalland Warren contains three buries (see sketch on worksheet) two of conventional shape and one L-shaped.
A: 12 x 6 metres clear ditched each side.
B: 12 x 5 metres.
C: L-shaped with sides 10 x 20 metres width 4 metres (ditched).
D: Doubtful, very eroded. Air photographs show the three buries in Yalland Warren clearly.

National Monuments Record, 1980, NMR SF1743, 30-32 (Aerial Photograph). SDV161746.

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

Royal Air Force 1948 and 1980 National Monuments Record aerial photographs show nine pillow mounds across two fields. In the field 'Warren Down' there are four small pillow mounds which show up mostly on the Royal Air Force 1948 aerial photograph. In the field named 'Yalland Warren' there are four pillow mounds, one of which is L-shaped.

Gerrard, S., 2004, List of Sites Remaining to be Considered for Designation on Dartmoor (Un-published). SDV345444.

This site was considered for designation as a Scheduled Ancient Monument during the Monument Protection Programme. The programme ended before the entire list of sites was successfully scheduled so this is included on a local list of Nationally Important Sites.

Ordnance Survey, 2010, MasterMap (Cartographic). SDV344030.

Eight pillow mounds are depicted on the modern map.

Sources / Further Reading

Associated Monuments

Associated Finds: none recorded

Associated Events: none recorded

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