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Summary

Assycombe Hill Stone Row including two parallel lines of upright stones 120 metres long and 1 metre to 1.6 metres wide leading downslope from an encircled cairn. The lower end of the alignment is denoted by a blocking stone with a hut circle to the south. Midway along the alignment a length of reave crosses the row and leads towards two hut circles situated to the south-west.

Location

Protected Status

• Scheduled Monument 1017981: Stone alignment, hut circle settlement, medieval long house and post-medieval farmstead at Assycombe

Other References/Statuses

• MPP Archaeological Item Dataset: 144149
• National Monuments Record: SX68SE4
• National Record of the Historic Environment: 443782
• Old DCC SMR Ref: SX68SE/3
• Old SAM County Ref: 594
• Old SAM Ref: 28655
• Ordnance Survey Archaeology Division: SE68SE4

Monument Type(s) and Dates

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

Full description

Ordnance Survey, 1880-1899, First Edition Ordnance 25 inch map (Cartographic). SDV336179.

Not shown on 19th century map.

Worth, R. N., 1892, The Stone Rows of Dartmoor, 389 (Article in Serial). SDV237176.

Worth gives details from unpublished field notes of R. Burnard, the row is ?m long, contains 84 stones, 0.15 - 0.45 metres high. Blocking stone, 2 metres long and 0.75 metres wide lies prone

Worth, R. N., 1894, The Stone Rows of Dartmoor. Part 3., 298 (Article in Serial). SDV234309.

Ordnance Survey, 1904 - 1906, Second Edition Ordnance Survey 25 inch Map (Cartographic). SDV325644.

Double 'Stone Row' shown on early 20th century map with a 'Cairn' at the north-eastern end.

Brailsford, J. W., 1938, Bronze Age Stone Monuments of Dartmoor, 445, 447 (Article in Serial). SDV304210.

Worth, R. H., 1946, The Stone Rows of Dartmoor. Part 1, 304 (Article in Serial). SDV251172.

Row No. 43. Assycombe. A double row, the stones small for the most part. Three larger stones stand next to the cairn which forms the terminal at the north east. The row is nearly perfect but markedly irregular; the width across the lines varies from 1.68 metres to 1.98 metres centre to centre of the stones. To the south of the row, 3 metres from the south-west row end is a hut circle.

Worth, R. H., 1953, Dartmoor, 224, Pl.62 (Monograph). SDV231148.

Assacombe. An almost perfect but irregular double stone row about 430 ft long aligned north east - south west and terminating in a 20 ft diameter cairn at the north east end. The distance between the rows varies from 5 1/2 ft to 6 1/2 ft and the stones are generally small, about 18 inches high except for the last three adjoining the cairn, which are 4 1/2 ft, 4 1/2 ft and 7 1/2 ft respectively. The cairn is at the higher end of the row.

Turner, J. R., 1976, Ancient Monuments on Forestry Commission Land. Fernworthy and Bellever (Report - non-specific). SDV351823.

Fernworthy Plantation. Assacombe Site No. 7C. Double stone row and cairn at eastern end. Double stone row, almost perfect. 131 metres long, constructed of small stones just 0.45 metres above the ground with three larger stones next to the cairn. Blocking stone at western end. The row is crossed by a reave half way along running north-south. The cairn at the eastern end is 6.8 metres diameter with a circle of small stones. Not planted over.
February 1976. The stone row, cairn and hut circle are enclosed as one area. Trees on the southern side are within falling distance of the row and hut.
Included in 1955 Spooner and Dixon report (A) Region south of the Teign (Assacombe and Lowton), Site No. 10.

Grinsell, L. V., 1978, Dartmoor Barrows, 146 (Article in Serial). SDV273224.

Site visit 15th October 1975. Plantation on Assycombe Hill. Cairn with indication of inner and outer retaining circles, double stone row, descends to west-south-west.

Turner, J., 1978, Report of Work Carried Out by the Forestry Commission since January 1976 (Report - non-specific). SDV351816.

Trees removed but site covered with fallen trees and debris.

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

Robinson, R., 1983, List of Field Monument Warden Visits 1983 (Un-published). SDV345762.

Site visit 24th June 1983.

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

This monument is not visible due to tree cover on the RAF1946 photos.

Gerrard, S., 1990-2002, Monument Protection Programme. Archaeological Item Dataset., 144149 (Report - Survey). SDV277946.

Site visit 29th April 1997. Stone alignment at Assycombe. A large number of the stones are very loose and could be moved very easily. The largest stones are nearest the cairn, with the largest standing up to 1.8 metres high. Row is partly overlain by a reave. Blocking stone is 1.27 metres high, 0.3 metres wide at base and 0.15 metres thick.

Butler, J., 1991, Dartmoor Atlas of Antiquities: Volume Two - The North, 166-167, 235, Map 35, Figure 35.10 (Monograph). SDV219155.

Assycombe Hill double stone row at SX66108363 with 129 stones, a cairn with a cist at the north-east end and a blocking stone at the south-west end. It probably originally had 144 neatly paired stones and the rows were restored in the 1880s.

Smith, N., 1992, Condition Survey of Identified Archaeology with Woodland Areas 1992 (Un-published). SDV351819.

Fernworthy, Assycombe No. 7C.
Site visit 27th May 1992. Site marked. Vegetation managed. Stability of site very good. Recommended that present management policy of site be maintained. Photos.

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

(01/06/1995) The stones of this almost perfect double stone row were re-erected by Reverend Baring-Gould. Half way along the row is crossed by a north-south reave. (See 68 SE 67). The blocking stone at the west end of the row is 1.25m high. At the east end, the cairn is 6.8m in diameter with a circle of small stones.

Dartmoor National Park Authority, 1996, Condition Survey of Identified Archaeology within Woodland Areas 1996 (Un-published). SDV351820.

Fernworthy, Assycombe Group No. 7C. Double stone row with cairn at end.
Site visit 27th September 1996. In a cleared area between two forest tracks. Aligned east-west. Only 1 post at the west end of the stone row. At least one additional post is required for the east end. One of the stones on the right hand side appears loose and needs consolidating. Photo.

English Heritage, 2005-2008, Prehistoric Survey Information (Cartographic). SDV345521.

Stones shown on survey.

English Heritage, 2011, National Heritage List for England, 1017981 (National Heritage List for England). SDV347072.

The monument, which falls into three areas, includes a stone alignment, dispersed stone hut circle settlement, Medieval long house and post-Medieval farmstead situated on a west facing slope overlooking the Assycombe Brook.
A double stone row, centred at SX 66058262 lies up a slope in a clearing in the Forestry Commission plantation on Assycombe Hill, Fernworthy. The row runs east-north-east to south-south-west, terminating at a cairn at the east end end and a blocking stone at the lower west end. The row is bisected by a reave running north to south.
The rows are 120 metres long and between 1.0 and 1.6 metres apart. Most of the stones are in the range 0.3 metres to 0.6 metres high, although some barely protrude above the ground. The largest stone, 2 metres high, lies at the east end and was re-erected in the 1890's. The stones at the east end are generally taller. The blocking stone at the west end is 1.3 metres tall and is set in line with the southernmost of the two rows.
The cairn at the east end is in line with the northern of the two rows. It measures 8.4 metres in diameter and is 0.6 metres high. It contains a large quantity of stone; two stones in the centre, set at right angles to each other around a hollow, suggest that it once held a cist.

Newman, P., 2013, Fernworthy Forest Sites Survey (Un-published). SDV351708.

Newman, P., 2013, The Archaeology of Fernworthy Forest, Dartmoor, Devon, 16, 19, 21, 61-3 Figs 13, 14, 16-18 (Report - Survey). SDV351784.

Part of a major concentration of prehistoric evidence within the Fernworthy newtake located along the eastern hillslope of the Assacombe Brook. Interestingly the site was not recorded until 1889 and is not marked on the first edition Ordnance Survey map of 1886 although it is marked on the 1905 map. The first and only detailed archaeological investigation of the site was by Burnard and Baring Gould in 1894 who re-erected several of the taller stones at the top, eastern end of the row.
The stone row comprises two parallel alignments, 117 metres long, ascending the eastern slop of Assacombe from west-south-west to east-north-east. A blocking stone makes up the western terminal of the southern row and a cairn forms the western terminal of both rows. The stones which are arranged in pairs vary in shape and height but are mostly small, some barely protruding above the turf. The two rows are 1.25 metres apart. Row A has 59 stones in situ including the western blocking stone. At least 12 stones are missing or buried and the two tall stones at the eastern end which were re-erected by Burnard and Baring Gould have fallen. The tallest stone, also re-ected, is 1.85 metres high. Row B has 64 stones in situ with four missing. The tallest stone at the eastern terminal which was likewise re-erected is in danger of falling. Of the remaining stones the tallest is 1 metre high.
Slightly to the west of halfway a low stony bank crosses the rows. This probable reave can be traced across the clearing and into the trees on the south side for a distance of several metres but cannot be seen beyond the northern edge of the clearing.
Now crowded by trees Assacombe stone row has lost the outward vista it once possessed but pollen evidence in fact suggests that monuments of this type were often placed in especially prepared woodland clearings. However, the tall conifers present an equally false context.
Assacombe is a fairly typical example of a double stone row but the steep gradient of the hillslope means that the ends of the row are not intervisible which is unusual for a row only 117 metres long. Also of note are the offset terminal barrow, the positioning of which must have a story to tell and the fact that there is a hut circle close by. It is most unusual for Bronze Age ceremonial and domestic structures to be so closely associated.

Ordnance Survey, 2014, MasterMap (Cartographic). SDV355681.

'Stone Row' marked on modern mapping.

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

Visible on aerial photograph.

Quinnell, N. V., 22/03/1995, Assycombe Stone Row (Personal Comment). SDV275583.

Runs from SX66008529 to SX66108564. About 110 metres long.

Ordnance Survey Archaeology Division, Unknown, SX68SE4 (Ordnance Survey Archaeology Division Card). SDV356539.

An almost perfect but irregular double stone row about 430 feet long aligned north-east to south-west and terminating in a cairn at the north-east end. The distance between the rows varies from 5.5 feet to 6.5 feet and the stones are generally small, about 18 inches high except for the last three adjoining the cairn which are 4.5, 4.5 and 7.5 feet respectively.
The stones were re-erected by Revd. Baring Gould. Half way along the row is crossed by a reave.

Sources / Further Reading

Associated Monuments

Associated Finds: none recorded

Associated Events

• EDV6203 - Archaeological Survey of Fernworthy Forest
• EDV6216 - Condition Surveys of Ancient Monuments on Forestry Commission Land
• EDV7389 - Fernworthy Forest condition survey 1996
• EDV7410 - Fernworthy Forest condition survey 1992
• EDV8409 - Dartmoor Royal Forest Project

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