Prehistoric Dartmoor Walks, walking the Stone Rows and Stone Circles of Dartmoor
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Dartmoor Site: Langstone Moor Stone Ring Cairn Circle

Langstone Moor Stone Ring Cairn Circle

Langstone Moor Stone Ring Cairn Circle

Photo taken on 25-06-2018

Database entries

PDW coverage: Dartmoor Site: Langstone Moor Stone Circle, Stone Row & Settlements
OS Map: SX 54843 77922
OS Source: Garmin
HER: MDV48862
Megalithic Portal: 45833
Alternate name: Langstone Moor
Short Name: RC Langstone
Turner: A22
Exist: Yes
Record: Unique
Record Source: PDW
Cairn Class: No
Dimensions (m): 6.9
Lidar: SX 54843 77922
Guide Map: 24
Nearest Bus Stop: Merrivale Dartmoor Inn (3.5 km) [Route: 98,171,172]
Nearby sites: SX 54843 77922

Notes

The author visited this site on 25/06/2018. A semi circular group of mounds can indeed be seen but these mounds are like the mounds all over Cox Tor, White Tor and Roos Tor. These mounds are probably periglacial. An alternative explanation of these mounds is the activity of the yellow meadow ant (Lasius flavus). Whilst the ants can use stones (natural or ring cairn) to initiate their mounds they are not required. Whichever explanation for these mounds is correct it seems most likely this site is a natural occurrence that happens to look like a ring cairn.

"A semi-circular bank, possibly the remains of a ring cairn.1.4 to 2m wide, 0.4m high. Composed of small + medium sized stones now largely turf-covered. It fades at each end of a near-perfect semi-circle of 14.9m internal diam. There is a low stone pile, 0.2m high, in se quadrant".

See also: On periglacial mounds see "What are these bumps on the moor?". On meadow ant mounds, see Morey, C.R 2010 "A New Interpretation of the Earth Hummocks on Cox Tor, Dartmoor, Devonshire" Geoscience in South-West England, 12, 219-222)

References

These are selected references with an emphasis on out of copyright sources linked as PDFs. For more detailed references try any linked HER or PMD record above.

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Page last updated 18/02/24