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Boundary earthwork from East Down to Orcheston Down

A Scheduled Monument in Tilshead, Wiltshire

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Coordinates

Latitude: 51.2383 / 51°14'18"N

Longitude: -1.9208 / 1°55'14"W

OS Eastings: 405627.504495

OS Northings: 148797.375617

OS Grid: SU056487

Mapcode National: GBR 3XT.775

Mapcode Global: VHB52.N4FJ

Entry Name: Boundary earthwork from East Down to Orcheston Down

Scheduled Date: 22 April 1966

Last Amended: 31 January 1990

Source: Historic England

Source ID: 1010251

English Heritage Legacy ID: 10113

County: Wiltshire

Civil Parish: Tilshead

Traditional County: Wiltshire

Lieutenancy Area (Ceremonial County): Wiltshire

Church of England Parish: Salisbury Plain

Church of England Diocese: Salisbury

Details

Boundary earthwork running across East Down and Orcheston Down. The best
preserved length is situated on Orcheston Down. On East Down the ditch is c.4m
wide with a bank on both sides. The northern bank is c.5m wide and the
southern is c.4m wide. The overall width is c.13m.

MAP EXTRACT
The site of the monument is shown on the attached map extract.

Source: Historic England

Reasons for Scheduling

The most complete and extensive survival of chalk downland archaeological
remains in central southern England occurs on Salisbury Plain, particularly in
those areas lying within the Salisbury Plain Training Area. These remains
represent one of the few extant archaeological "landscapes" in Britain and are
considered to be of special significance because they differ in character from
those in other areas with comparable levels of preservation. Individual sites
on Salisbury Plain are seen as being additionally important because the
evidence of their direct association with each other survives so well.
Boundary earthworks which include linear earthworks, so called ranch
boundaries, dykes and cross ridge dykes are particularly well preserved in the
Salisbury Plain Training Area. They provide important evidence of prehistoric
landholdings, land reorganisation and changing agricultural practices through
time.

Source: Historic England

Sources

Other
Trust for Wessex Archaeology, (1987)
Wiltshire Library & Museum Service, (1987)

Source: Historic England

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