Format: An irregular enclosure, comprising ditches interrupted by gaps (or causeways), sometimes with surviving banks. The banks are generally alongside the ditches but there may be sections of bank with no ditch and vice versa.
Typical dimensions: The area enclosed is usually 0.4-3.0 hectares but the largest is 10ha. To visualise these areas, it may help to know that the diameters of circles with those same areas would be 60m, 200m and 350m.
Siting: The monuments were first recognised at sites on or close to the top of hills. However, now that many more sites have been found through aerial surveillance, we know that most sites were on lowland. In Britain they are mainly located south of the river Trent. They are also numerous examples in France and elsewhere in mainland Europe. Only a few sites are known in each of Cumbria, Ireland, Scotland and Wales.
Period of construction: In Britain 3750-3600BC. They seem to have been constructed within a short intense period of each other and re-used in the following centuries (Whittle et al. 2011). In France they may have been constructed from 5000BC. In Scandinavia, 32 sites are known and they were also built over a short period but in this case it was later than in Britain 3400-3200BC (Andersen N.H. in Varndell and Topping 2002 page 1).
Examples: Hembury Fort, Maiden Castle, Hambledon, Robin Hood Ball
Format: An irregular enclosure made of low, irregular, banks of stones surrounding a summit. The banks may be discontinuous. Some gaps are where a natural rock outcrop might make a bank redundant, whilst other gaps may be entrances. The banks can be 10-20m wide, and difficult to walk across. Tor enclosures are contemporary with causewayed enclosures and are considered to be their equivalent in areas where there is little soil and no chalk.
Typical dimensions: Range of sizes is similar to causewayed enclosures.
Siting: Found in Cornwall around prominent tors, with 2-4 examples also known on Dartmoor.
Period of construction: Similar to Causewayed enclosures.
Examples: Cornwall - Carn Brea, Carn Galver, De Lank enclosure, Helman Tor, Rough Tor, Stowe Pound; St Stephen’s Beacon, Trencrom Castle, Treggarrick Tor (all in Cornwall); White Tor, Dewerstone; Private site in Dewerstone area; Hound Tor? (all on Dartmoor).
Format: Generally, two parallel banks and/or ditches, at least 10 times longer than their distance apart. They may have terminal banks, curved or square, across the width at the ends. The cursus may change direction along its length, but any section of any length is straight.
Loveday (2006) describes a ‘cursus continuum’ of similarly sized shaped earthworks ranging from 10m long to several Km long. We will use his categorisation (see Loveday 2006 p26 and Appendix A p203) by size and shape into ‘mega sites’, ‘major sites’, ‘minor sites’, ‘cursiform’ and ‘bank barrows’.
Hence, we treat bank barrows, which are rare, long single banks with parallel sides made of earth or turves, as belonging to the cursus family.
We will also refer to cursus types A, B and Bi which reflect the terminal shape where it is known. Type A have a rounded end and type B a square end. Within type B, the type Bi are extraordinary because they are near perfect rectangles.
Typical dimensions: Often 20-800m long but a handful are 2700-5040m long. Widths typically vary from 25-100m. Bank barrows are over 100m long.
Siting: Usually on flat or undulating land such as gravel river terraces or undulating chalk hills. Bank barrows can be across hill tops.
Period of construction: 3600-3300 BC. Some date through to 3000BC but recent dates from England and Wales cluster in the earlier period. Scottish sites tend to be earlier still and in the range 4000-3600BC. Source: Historic England (2018b) page 4.
Examples: Greater Stonehenge Cursus, Lesser Stonehenge Cursus, Stanwell, Nether Exe, Pentridge & Gussage (together known as the Dorset Cursus), Springfield, Maiden Castle (a bank barrow).
Format: At least 3 stones in a line. A single line of stones is the most common arrangement. However, double and triple lines parallel to each other are well known. There are also more complex arrangements comprising up to 9 lines and sometimes in a radial pattern. When the stones are slab shaped most of the slabs are set to align with the row, rather than across the row. Furthermore, where there are two or three parallel lines, the stones were placed to match each other across the lines.
There are very rare examples of ‘cairn alignments’ where small cairns (about 2m diameter) were set in straight lines. We will consider these alongside stone rows because they probably performed a similar function.
Typical dimensions: Rows are 3m to 3km long. Stones range from 10cm to 4m in height. However, within any given row, whilst the heights do vary, the heights of most of the stones are usually close to the mean height for that row. Rows where most of the stones are over 2m tall are called ‘megalithic rows’.
Siting: Mostly found in uplands with 30% of those in Great Britain found on Dartmoor
Period of construction: We only have dating for a single site in Great Britain, which is c 3650BC for Cut Hill, Dartmoor (Fyfe R. & Greeves T. 2010). Cut Hill is a megalithic row. The date was a surprise because burials found at the end of some rows are Bronze Age. Gerrard (Cut Hill) discusses the dating and why the construction could be later than indicated. However, there is also a suggestion that the Dartmoor megalithic rows are older than others in the area because they seem to have been decommissioned.
Examples: Merrivale, Dartmoor (two long double rows, plus 4 shorter single rows); Devil’s Arrows, Yorkshire (3 surviving stones 5.5-6.9m tall), Erme Valley, Dartmoor (3.2km long); Sourton Tors, Dartmoor (a cairn alignment).
Format: Small stones (‘miniliths’) set out in geometric and semi-geometric shapes. They take a variety of forms including rectangles and quincunxes, to apparently random arrangements of stones.
Typical dimensions: Stones are typically 10-50cm tall. Shape dimensions are a few 10s of metres.
Siting: Only recognised on Exmoor. There are marked concentrations near the headwaters of valleys.
Period of construction: Not determined.
Examples: Badgworthy Water, Exmoor (16 settings here)
Format: Single tall stone or pair of stones originally set upright.
Typical dimensions: Often 1.5m-2.5m tall although Rudston, the tallest in Britain, is 7.6m tall.
Siting: Especially prevalent in uplands and other areas where suitable stone is readily available. Widespread throughout Western Europe including in British Isles, Norway, France, Germany, Italy and Portugal.
Period of construction: the Er-Grah stone (Locmariaquer, Morbihan) is thought to date from 4500BC. We are not aware of well attested dates for standing stones in the British Isles.
Examples: Rudston (7.6m tall); Locmariaquer, Morbihan (originally 20.6m tall).
Format: Mound made of stones, soil and/ or turves. Stone examples are often called cairns. Barrows may contain burials or cremations.
Typical dimensions: Cairns can be only 2m across but by ‘large’ we are referring to those barrows / cairns that are 15m – 60m across, and typically 20m-40m across. Original heights are hard to judge but surviving heights of such cairns are often 1-2m and occasionally up to 5m.
Siting: They are often, but not invariably, seen in prominent positions on hill tops and on ridge lines. However, this distribution may reflect the destruction of those on lower land.
Period of construction: Barrows have been constructed from the early Neolithic (starting c 4000BC) through to Viking times. However, the majority date to the Bronze Age. Dating of the original structure can be problematic where, for example, the burial providing a date was found relatively high in the mound and so may not be the primary burial. Some barrows in Dorset are proven to have never had a primary burial, making the original purpose of such monuments unclear.
Examples: Rillaton Barrow, Bodmin Moor; Eastern White Barrow, Dartmoor.
Format: Perfect circle of stones or, if not a perfect circle, usually a geometric variation such as an oval
Typical dimensions: Usually 20-40m diameter. The largest stone circle is usually taken to be at Stanton Drew (112m), although one might class that site as a circle-henge. Burl 2000 page 46 lists the twenty circles exceeding 50m diameter. The list is a mixture of circles and circle-henges. There is also the irregular Avebury outer ring, which has a diameter of 330m.
Number of stones originally often 4-36 but larger numbers known (e.g. Avebury). Usually, but not invariably, there is not a stone in the centre of the circle.
Siting: Found in Ireland and west side of Great Britain where the geology means stone in plentiful. Also, in the chalk areas of South England where sarsen stone was available.
Period of construction: 3000-2000BC which is coincident with the henges and circle-henges. These are ‘definite presence’ dates with ‘possible presence’ periods 200 years before and after. Stone circle building continued to 1600BC, but not necessarily of the large type. (Historic England 2018c page 8)
Examples: Castlerigg, Cumbria; The Hurlers, Bodmin Moor; Twelve Apostles, Dumfries.
Format: A circular or oval bank with a ditch alongside the bank. Usually, the ditch is inside the bank but exceptionally, including at Stonehenge, the ditch is outside the bank. Timber posts sometimes stood in one or two rings concentric with the bank - the posts being inside the ditch, outside the bank, or both.
Typical dimensions: Constructions >20m diameter are called henges, whilst smaller versions exist and are ‘mini-henges’. Henges can be up to 100m across (bank to bank).
Siting: Most henges are on the east side of Great Britain, where there are few stone circles. However, there are exceptions, such as Bow, Devon.
Period of construction: 3000-2000BC which is coincident with the large stone circles and circle-henges. These are ‘definite presence’ dates with ‘possible presence’ periods 200 years before and after. (Historic England 2018c page 8)
Examples: Thornborough, Yorkshire (3 henges); Bow, Devon; Milfield, Northumberland (reconstructed at nearby Maelmin Heritage Centre with posts forming a complete ring inside the ditch, and some arcs of a circle outside the bank); Stonehenge phase I (single ring of posts within the henge bank); Woodhenge, Wiltshire (6 concentric rings of posts within its ditch);
Format: A large open circle within a henge.
Typical dimensions: 60m across bank top to bank top; 40m across between inner ditch edge; bank 2m high. Avebury could be considered a circle-henge but it is also a mega-henge. Aside from Avebury, four or five of the eight largest circles in Burl’s list (2000 page 46) are within henges.
Siting: Generally, on the ‘central spine’ border between the circle /henge distributions. However, there are exceptions e.g. Stripple Stones, Cornwall.
Period of construction: 3000-2000BC which is coincident with the stone circles and henges. These are ‘definite presence’ dates with ‘possible presence’ periods 200 years before and after. (Historic England 2018c page 8).
Sites: Stonehenge; Stanton Drew, Castilly & Stripple Stones (both Cornwall); Arbor Low & Bull Ring (both Peak District); Devil’s Quoits (Oxfordshire), Ring of Brodgar & Stones of Stenness (both Orkney); Balfarg (Fife); Cairnpapple (West Lothian); Broomend of Crichie (Aberdeenshire); Castleruddery (Wicklow).
Format: A henge much larger than other henges and of irregular shape. Some have stone or timber circles within them. Three had a very large barrow on their bank or nearby. Some have evidence of posts around and close to the perimeter.
Typical dimensions: 200-500m across
Siting: Restricted to Wessex
Period of construction: Building activity at several sites is 2600-2400 BC (Greaney S. et al. 2020 page 224). However, at Avebury, at least, this was enhancing an existing layout because the large henge bank was built over a lower one of similar shape, and the cove and the inner 'circles' date to the Middle Neolithic.
Sites: Avebury (a mega henge with 3 stone circles within it), Durrington Walls (with two timber circles within it), Knowlton South, Marden. Mount Pleasant
Format: Extremely large human-caused mound, with flat area at the top but otherwise conical.
Typical dimensions: Silbury Hill is 160m wide at its base, and 30m high. Marlborough is 83m across at its base and 18m high. Both summits are about 30m in diameter.
Siting: Silbury and Marlborough are both sited on the flood plain of the river Kennett but 8.3km apart. Both have high ground nearby in most directions.
Period of construction: Silbury was built in stages, probably in the period 2470-2350BC (english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/Silbury-hill/history/). Marlborough is probably contemporary with Silbury and certainly built in the period 2500-2150BC. (Leary J. et al. 2013 page 137).
Sites: Silbury Hill, Marlborough Mound
The following monuments are also mentioned as potentially having a survey role, but are not currently a focus for our research:
Format: A ring of wooden posts or concentric rings of wooden posts. ‘Timber circles’ are evidenced by pits which once held wood. However, there are also sites where the pits never held posts. These are called ‘pit circles’.
Typical dimensions: 15-60 metre diameter
Siting: Widespread. They are certainly found in areas such as the east of England where stone is not readily available. However, the picture is complex: Some circles were initially of timber posts before being replaced by stone, whilst timber circles are also associated with some henges.
Period of construction: 3000-1200 BC. These are ‘definite presence’ dates with ‘possible presence’ periods 200 years before and after. (Historic England 2018c page 8).
Examples: Sarn-y-bryn-caled, Powys; The Sanctuary, Wiltshire;
Format: Circular, oval or irregular enclosure defined by post holes
Typical dimensions: several hundred metres across. Post holes can be large e.g. 2m diameter and 2m deep and holding posts 0.8m diameter.
Siting: tba
Period of construction: Late Neolithic e.g. 2700BC- Hindwell; 2500BC – Mount Pleasant.
Examples: Hindwell (oval, 36ha, 880m x 540m, c 1400 post holes); Mount Pleasant (within and along the mega henge ditch, c 1600 post holes); Walton, West Kennet, Dunragit
Sources: Mount Pleasant - see Greaney et al. 2020; Hindwell - see CPAT report 1244 Hindwell Palisaded and Double-palisaded Enclosures, Radnorshire: Excavations 2013.