Enclosure

The National Monuments Service's description

In pasture, located on the W side of a rise where ground falls away to a lowlying area of rougher, wettish pasture. Overlooked immediately to NW by a ridge on top of which two raths (MA071-055----; MA071-056----) are located.
This enclosure is depicted on the 1838 OS 6-inch map as a roughly circular embanked enclosure (diam. 30-35m) cut through roughly centrally by a N−S road; it is shown on the 1931 edition as a subrectangular hachured area (c. 45m N−S; c. 20m E−W) bordered at W by the N−S road and at S by an E−W field boundary.
According to local information, it was partially levelled in the early 1980’s. When inspected in 1997 it survived as a roughly rectangular raised area (c. 35-40m N−S; 22m E−W to road) defined to S and W by a levelled scarp, merging almost indistinguishably with the natural slope. To N it was defined by a gentle slope dropping into to a shallow depression (W c.6m), possibly a fosse, bordered externally by a low but distinct rise (W c. 6-7m; H ext. 0.7m), possibly an external bank.
The E side is bordered by a field fence flanking a road; a rise in road level roughly mirrors the N−S profile of the enclosure. In the field to E of the road, a thicket of blackthorn (Wth c.10m E/W) extends N−S parallel to the enclosure, but no upstanding archaeological features can be seen.
Subsequent to the 1997 inspection, the N two thirds of the enclosure were destroyed during reclamation works

Compiled by: Jane O’Shaughnessy

Date of upload: 30 July 2021