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Summary

An area of Medieval or later tinworks exploiting the upper, southern section of the O Brook. The workings are generally poorly documented although a tinwork here is documented in 1569 and during the early 17th century. An archaeological field survey in 1995 recorded the earthworks as comprising openworks, beamworks, streamworks, lodeback pits and leats. The works between Skir Hill and Ter Hill is characterised by north-south trending beamworks, which have obscured earlier features.

Location

Protected Status: none recorded

Other References/Statuses

• National Monuments Record: SX67SW301
• National Record of the Historic Environment: 1050211
• Old DCC SMR Ref: SX67SW/260
• Old DCC SMR Ref: SX67SW/261

Monument Type(s) and Dates

• BEAMWORK (Early Medieval to XVII - 1066 AD (Between) to 1632 AD (Between))
• LEAT (Early Medieval to XVII - 1066 AD (Between) to 1632 AD (Between))
• OPEN CUT (Early Medieval to Post Medieval - 1066 AD to 1750 AD)
• PROSPECTING PIT (Early Medieval to XVII - 1066 AD (Between) to 1632 AD (Between))
• STREAMWORK (Early Medieval to XVII - 1066 AD (Between) to 1632 AD (Between))

Full description

Royal Air Force, 1946, RAF/CPE/UK/1890, 4361 (Aerial Photograph). SDV169268.

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

Openwork cut into Skir Hill, with spoil heaps, visible and recorded in SX 64697058.

Greeves, T. A. P., 1986, Tin Mines and Miners of Dartmoor, A photographic record (Monograph). SDV351363.

Greeves, T. A. P., 1990, An Assessment of Dartmoor Tinworking, 19 (Report - Assessment). SDV343684.

Early streamworks have been left on a wedge of old land surface, cut by later openworks on all sides.

Royal Commission for the Historical Monuments of England, 1993-1998, Dartmoor Royal Forest Project (Report - Survey). SDV346608.

(01/11/1995) Centred SX 64707040 Skir Gut is a large tinworks which has exploited the upper, southern section of the O Brook and is part of a much larger area of tinworking that follows the entire O Brook valley and its tributaries (see Hexworthy Mine Report). The workings are generally poorly documented although a tinwork called 'Scurr' is mentioned in 1569 and in the early 17th century.
Evidence for three methods of tinworking survive on the ground.
A large openwork comprising a deep linear gully forms the eastern side of the working between SX64707050 and SX74777082, and exploited an approximately north-south lode. The gully is up to 6m deep in places and has an impressive, steep scarp on the eastern side.
A streamwork covers approximately 10ha to the west of the openwork, extending north beyond Skir Ford (SX65007130) and forms one section of the O Brook's alluvial workings. The streamwork has three zones of particularly well-preserved parallel dumps, at SX64657051, SX64727040 and SX64727080 each of differing orientation demonstrating separate episodes of work.
Lodeback pits, exploiting separate sections of lode are visible at SX64607013 and SX64957010. These consist of confluent rows of conical pits with crescentic spoil dumps on the down-slope sides.
Complex water systems associated with the tinworks may be seen in the vicinity of the upper section of the site. Several channels of up to 1.5m deep extend down from the high ground to the south of the working and probably delivered rainwater and surface run-off to both the streamworking and lode working phases.
Prospecting pits occur in several positions around the site, with major concentrations at SX68557063 and SX64607027. Site surveyed at :2500

Cranstone, D. + Hedley, I., 1995, Monuments Protection Programme: The Tin Industry Step 3 Site Assessments, Devon 34 (Report - non-specific). SDV357946.

Documented.

Sources / Further Reading

Associated Monuments

Associated Finds: none recorded

Associated Events

• EDV8409 - Dartmoor Royal Forest Project

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