Guidance for walkers: The monuments featured in this database are archaeological treasures and need to be protected and preserved - please do not disturb any sites. Please check access and firing times before visiting sites, not all sites listed are on open access land. Firing ranges and boundaries of open access areas are marked on the OL28 OS Dartmoor Explorer map. Please stick to the country code and consider giving support to the numerous agencies that help to keep Dartmoor a fabulous natural and historic environment!
About the database listings: In all listings clicking on the photo or the site name will open a page for the site with a larger photo and further details from the database. The database now has over 6680 records covering nearly all publicly listed sites on Dartmoor including around 4800 round houses. This level of detail is of interest to archaeologists but tends to swamp listings of sites more likely to be of interest for walkers. For this reason, the listings default to around 550 core sites only. These are the stone circles, stone rows and the ring cairns listed by Turner. The default search radius is 2 km. The controls below the map can be used to start a new search by entering a 6- or 8-digit reference (without the prefix "SX"). The search radius can be specified and you can add incremental Display layers of detail on top of the core sites. If using a more detailed layer you will need to decrease the search radius to avoid getting hundreds of search results.
These listings have incorporated, matched up and merged all of the records from all of the major archaeological listings including: Worth, Grinsell, Turner, Butler, Bill Radcliffe, Sandy Gerrard, Megalithic Portal, the National Monument Records and the Historic Environment Records. The author would like to thank Bill, Sandy, the lovely people both at Megalithic Portal (especially Anne Tate who did an amazing job to link listings) and at ACE Archaeology for collaborative work over the years to synchronise and correct listings across the various websites which now interlink. A culmination of years of work the final merger of cairn records took 3 months of cross referencing in 2017 the result being a snapshot of the records at that time. This data has in turn been refined since by field work and research. The round house data was supplied by Sandy Gerrard. Grid references are in order of accuracy: from Google Earth satellite, if visible and found, from a Garmin GPS reading, if visited by the author and from the literature otherwise. Individual site pages will state the source of the grid reference and provide satellite imagery. If a site listing lacks a photo it has not yet been visited by the author in which case the grid reference is from the literature.
Currently the database only includes sites which can be represented by a grid reference. Reaves are not included as they require GIS shape technology which is beyond the current capability of this system. To see the sources for the records, look at the tables on the resources menu. The database listings can also be viewed on a Google map and downloaded as GPS datasets for Garmin devices.
Corrections, or any feedback or suggestions are very welcome, email: info@dartmoorwalks.org.uk.
NOTE: Clicking on the icons for each monument in the map will give the name of the site. You can zoom in and out and drag the map around.
OS Map: SX 57581 88897
HER: MDV3169
Megalithic Portal: 36418
PMD: Fordsland Ledge
ShortName: CN Fordsland
Butler map: 42.3
Butler Vol 5: p.160 & Fig.98
Grinsell: OKE 4
Notes: " In a crest position on Fordsland Ledge at 581.0m OD is the disturbed remains of a turf-and-heather-covered cairn. It measures 12.2m by 13.9m in diameter and is 1.1m high. In a hollow in the centre are a number of large stones suggesting the possibility of a former cist or even a chamber, utilizing the natural outcrop as its base." "The large stones visible in the centre of the feature are somewhat unusual and not typical of a cist-like structure. The presence of a chamber is very doubtful and it is more likely that the interior of the cairn has, at some point, been remodelled to create a small shelter."
Nearby sites: SX 57581 88897
Distance: 0.00km
OS Map: SX 58032 89224
HER: MDV20152
Megalithic Portal: 36417
Alternate name: Harter Hill Stone Ring Cairn Circle
ShortName: RC HighWillhay
Butler map: 42.4
Turner: A65
Notes: "Higher willhayes ring cairn. Irregular segment of stone ring set against rock outcrop.10m wide n-s and 5.5m radius to outcrop, with bank 1m wide and 0.2m high. Also contains segment of stone setting 7.5m wide n-s, 2.5m radius to outcrop"
Nearby sites: SX 58032 89224
Distance: 0.56km
OS Map: SX 5805 8922
HER: MDV21296
Megalithic Portal: 45849
Alternate name: High Willhays? Stone Ring Cairn Circle
ShortName: RC:HighWillh N
Butler map: 42.2
Grinsell: OKE 5
Turner: A64
Notes: Possibly HER 21296? OS co-ords do not quite match. Butler lists OKE 5, 5a
Nearby sites: SX 5805 8922
Distance: 0.57km
OS Map: SX 58044 90185
HER: MDV4814
Megalithic Portal: 36416
Alternate name: Yes Tor 2 Cairn
ShortName: CN Yes Tor E
Butler map: 42.1.2
Grinsell: OKE 2
Notes: One of two cairns on Yes Tor. On the top of the flat outcrop of Yes Tor and piled against the west side is an amorphous mass of stones representing a ruined cairn. The patch of stones on the top is more or less 14.0m across and 0.3 m high and the piling against the outcrop is 2.3m high. It is possible that this has resulted from bulldozing the cairn over the side of the outcrop but the stones appear quite stable and compacted.
The central excavation is approximately 12.0m across and extends to 0.5m below the natural ground level. In the base of the hollow and on its south side are three partly buried slabs each about 1.7m long, 0.2m thick and more than 0.5m wide, which look like the displaced remains of a former cist.
Nearby sites: SX 58044 90185
Distance: 1.37km
OS Map: SX 57955 90210
HER: MDV4813
Megalithic Portal: 36416
Alternate name: Yes Tor 1 Cairn
ShortName: CN Yes Tor W
Butler map: 42.1.1
Grinsell: OKE 1
Notes: Western of two round barrows on the summit of yes tor. About 36.6m nw of flag staff on the top of yes tor is an incomplete ring of rough granite boulders varying in size but generally 0.3m - 0.9m. Long. The ring is about 6.1m long and is defective on the north east side where there is evidence of a slightly sunken trackway. In the interior of this ring the ground is slightly irregular and contains blocks of granite. At the south western part of the circle a smaller circle of stones abuts on the previous circle. Butler Volume 2 Map 42.1.
Nearby sites: SX 57955 90210
Distance: 1.36km
Page last updated 18/02/24