Details

The monument includes a round cairn situated on the ridge between Higher Tor
and Oke Tor overlooking the valleys of the East Okement and Taw Rivers. The
cairn survives as a 9m diameter mound standing up to 0.9m high. A number of
edge set stones on the western side of the mound may indicate the presence of
a kerb which survives elsewhere as a buried feature. The mound material
extends 1.4m beyond the outer edge of the kerb. A hollow in the centre of the
cairn represents the site of a partial early excavation, which recovered a few
fragments of burnt bone. Two large stones sitting within the central pit may
be the remnants of a broken cist coverstone.

MAP EXTRACT
The site of the monument is shown on the attached map extract.
It includes a 2 metre boundary around the archaeological features,
considered to be essential for the monument's support and preservation.

Source: Historic England

Reasons for Scheduling

Dartmoor is the largest expanse of open moorland in southern Britain and,
because of exceptional conditions of preservation, it is also one of the most
complete examples of an upland relict landscape in the whole country. The
great wealth and diversity of archaeological remains provide direct evidence
for human exploitation of the Moor from the early prehistoric period onwards.
The well-preserved and often visible relationship between settlement sites,
major land boundaries, trackways, ceremonial and funerary monuments as well as
later industrial remains, gives significant insights into successive changes
in the pattern of land use through time. Round cairns are prehistoric funerary
monuments dating to the Bronze Age (c.2000-700 BC). They were constructed as
earthen or rubble mounds, the latter predominating in areas of upland Britain
where such raw materials were locally available in abundance. Round cairns may
cover single or multiple burials and are sometimes surrounded by an outer
ditch. Often occupying prominent locations, they are a major visual element in
the modern landscape. Their considerable variation in form and longevity as a
monument type provide important information on the diversity of beliefs and
social organisation amongst early prehistoric communities. They are
particularly representative of their period and a substantial proportion of
surviving examples are considered worthy of protection. Dartmoor provides one
of the best preserved and most dense concentrations of round cairns in south-
western Britain.

The round cairn 250m south east of Winter Tor survives well and is known from
part excavation to contain archaeological information relating to its
construction and use. Given its prominent location, this cairn must have also
been a significant landmark form the later prehistoric period onwards.

Source: Historic England

Sources

Other
Devon County Sites and Monuments Register, SX69SW14, (1994)

Source: Historic England