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<< Our Photo Pages >> Broadsands Chambered Tomb - Chambered Tomb in England in Devon

Submitted by scullion on Friday, 26 March 2004  Page Views: 20970

Neolithic and Bronze AgeSite Name: Broadsands Chambered Tomb Alternative Name: Hedgebank
Country: England
NOTE: This site is 3.4 km away from the location you searched for.

County: Devon Type: Chambered Tomb
Nearest Town: Paignton  Nearest Village: Churston Ferrers
Map Ref: SX89315732  Landranger Map Number: 202
Latitude: 50.405296N  Longitude: 3.558981W
Condition:
5Perfect
4Almost Perfect
3Reasonable but with some damage
2Ruined but still recognisable as an ancient site
1Pretty much destroyed, possibly visible as crop marks
0No data.
-1Completely destroyed
2 Ambience:
5Superb
4Good
3Ordinary
2Not Good
1Awful
0No data.
2 Access:
5Can be driven to, probably with disabled access
4Short walk on a footpath
3Requiring a bit more of a walk
2A long walk
1In the middle of nowhere, a nightmare to find
0No data.
4 Accuracy:
5co-ordinates taken by GPS or official recorded co-ordinates
4co-ordinates scaled from a detailed map
3co-ordinates scaled from a bad map
2co-ordinates of the nearest village
1co-ordinates of the nearest town
0no data
4

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I have visited· I would like to visit

sophiewilder Puck_sound Platypuss would like to visit

angieweekender visited on 1st Jan 2014 - their rating: Cond: -1 Amb: 3 Access: 3 Despite Broadsands being the likely earliest chambered tomb in the British Isles, I was saddened to see very little left of the original construction.

AngieLake have visited here

Broadsands Chambered Tomb
Broadsands Chambered Tomb submitted by scullion : SX 892573, Devon A Neolithic chambered tomb or passage grave located on the southern slope overlooking Torbay coast at Broadsands. This megalithic chamber has a single parallel-sided entrance passage 3.8 metres long and 1.2 metres wide lined with alternating orthostats and dry stone walling set within a near circular cairn 12 metres in diameter at construction but later reduced to 7 metres north ... (Vote or comment on this photo)
A Neolithic chambered tomb or passage grave located on the southern slope overlooking Torbay coast at Broadsands. This megalithic chamber has a single parallel-sided entrance passage 3.8 metres long and 1.2 metres wide lined with alternating orthostats and dry stone walling set within a near circular cairn 12 metres in diameter at construction but later reduced to 7 metres north east by 9 metres east west.

The tomb comprises of a polygonal chamber with dimensions of 3.35 metres by 2.1 metres and maximum height of 1.6 metres. The chamber was constructed of eleven local limestone upright orthostats with an infill of horizontally placed dry stone walling. Seven orthostats remain in situ while one of the huge capstones now lies semi upright on the southern side of the monument.

Excavation produced evidence for three primary inhumations that of two adults and one infant associated with Neolithic pottery. A secondary inhumation of a young adult was found on the stone floor with late Neolithic pottery. Evidence was also found of a ritual cleansing prior to reuse and a later disturbance during the Medieval period when the tomb was incorporated into a hedge bank marking the parish boundary between Paignton and Churston Ferrers. Scheduled.
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Broadsands Chambered Tomb
Broadsands Chambered Tomb submitted by Antonine : Photo taken in 2011 (Vote or comment on this photo)

Broadsands Chambered Tomb
Broadsands Chambered Tomb submitted by Antonine (Vote or comment on this photo)

Broadsands Chambered Tomb
Broadsands Chambered Tomb submitted by Antonine : The burial chamber forms part of a bank hedge (Vote or comment on this photo)

Broadsands Chambered Tomb
Broadsands Chambered Tomb submitted by Antonine : Masons mark on one of the stones, photo taken in 2011 (Vote or comment on this photo)

Broadsands Chambered Tomb
Broadsands Chambered Tomb submitted by Antonine : Part of the view, 2011 (Vote or comment on this photo)

Broadsands Chambered Tomb
Broadsands Chambered Tomb submitted by Antonine : Photo taken in 2011

Broadsands Chambered Tomb
Broadsands Chambered Tomb submitted by Antonine

Broadsands Chambered Tomb
Broadsands Chambered Tomb submitted by Antonine : The tomb has a single entrance passage and was originally set within a cairn, photo taken in 2011

Broadsands Chambered Tomb
Broadsands Chambered Tomb submitted by Antonine : Closer look

Broadsands Chambered Tomb
Broadsands Chambered Tomb submitted by Antonine : Neolithic chambered tomb on a slope overlooking Broadsands Beach, photo taken in 2011

Broadsands Chambered Tomb
Broadsands Chambered Tomb submitted by angieweekender : This is Radfords plan of Broadsands tomb after his excavation. 1958. This is a screenshot from Sheridan et al 2008

Broadsands Chambered Tomb
Broadsands Chambered Tomb submitted by AngieLake : A 'Flat Axe' on display in the cabinet in the foyer of Torquay Museum with the Milber Camp figurines. It is described as 'Early Bronze Age' and from 'Broadsands, Churston', and 'made from copper or bronze'. (1 comment)

Broadsands Chambered Tomb
Broadsands Chambered Tomb submitted by Bladup : Broadsands Chambered Tomb.

Broadsands Chambered Tomb
Broadsands Chambered Tomb submitted by Bladup : The overgrown Broadsands Chambered Tomb.

Broadsands Chambered Tomb
Broadsands Chambered Tomb submitted by Bladup : Broadsands Chambered Tomb.

Broadsands Chambered Tomb
Broadsands Chambered Tomb submitted by Bladup : The sadly very overgrown and fenced Broadsands Chambered Tomb, What are we thinking of with our ancient monuments?

Broadsands Chambered Tomb
Broadsands Chambered Tomb submitted by AngieLake : The excavated femur bones preserved in the earth on the tomb's paving slab from Torquay Museum. Evidence from stable isotope analysis dates them to 3768-3641 BC. Despite living so close to the sea it was found that humans here had a diet almost wholly based on terrestrial foods. (Excavation 1958)

Broadsands Chambered Tomb
Broadsands Chambered Tomb submitted by AngieLake : View approx ENE from the top of the hill, which is still some distance from the lower-sited tomb.

Broadsands Chambered Tomb
Broadsands Chambered Tomb submitted by AngieLake : Diana, who was so helpful in showing me where to find this tomb, standing next to it for scale. (She'd be about 5'3", I would guess.) We thought it was so sad that it looks so neglected, and hope that someone will now take an interest in improving its surroundings.

Broadsands Chambered Tomb
Broadsands Chambered Tomb submitted by AngieLake : On the way up towards the summit of the hill, looking back at the tomb in the hedge and the houses of Broadsands, with the viaduct amongst the trees.

Broadsands Chambered Tomb
Broadsands Chambered Tomb submitted by AngieLake : Though one description mentioned 'capstones', I think this large slab is just one whole piece, albeit cracked in the centre. This view may be looking south.

Broadsands Chambered Tomb
Broadsands Chambered Tomb submitted by AngieLake : Diana noticed this fallen stone [below centre of photo] at the [lower] foot of the largest upright in the hedge.

Broadsands Chambered Tomb
Broadsands Chambered Tomb submitted by AngieLake : A side view of the larger upright in the hedge.

Broadsands Chambered Tomb
Broadsands Chambered Tomb submitted by AngieLake : A stone lying on the ground between the large upright in the hedge and the main remains of the chambered tomb.

Broadsands Chambered Tomb
Broadsands Chambered Tomb submitted by AngieLake : One of the largest remaining uprights stands in the hedge, upslope of the fallen capstone and its upright supports.

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"Broadsands Chambered Tomb" | Login/Create an Account | 7 News and Comments
  
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Re: Broadsands Chambered Tomb by angieweekender on Saturday, 10 February 2018
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I recently had a discussion about Broadsands in association with the Coldrum tombs in Kent. Both these tombs have the earliest c14 dates for the whole country for chambered tombs. So possible Broadsands is the very earliestas it's dates precede Coldrum by a few hundred years. Whittle et al 2011. And so according to Chris Scarre, Broadsands reflects a possible continuity of this building tradition from the continent. The complete reassessment was written by Sheridan et al 2008 Revisiting a small passage tomb at Broadsands Devon. Proceedings of Devon Archaeological Society 1-66. Really fascinating article which includes strontium isotope analysis of teeth which gives us information on a terrestrial diet, C14 dates from humans and pig bone, with a revision of the Raleigh RDfords 1958 excavation and a discussion of late Mesolithic cave burials in the region. .
Some early Neolithic pottery was also found which has been designated as a Southwest new fabric. Large angular hand crushed vein Quartz tempered pottery. This is found throughout the region on approximately 55% of early Neolithic sites.
http://dro.dur.ac.uk/14506/1/14506.pdf I managed to visit the tomb in 2014 and wasn't closed to the public.
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Re: Broadsands Chambered Tomb by Anonymous on Friday, 09 February 2018
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Re: Broadsands Chambered Tomb by rogerkread on Monday, 02 July 2012
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Attempted to visit this site last month - gates into relevant fields either side of it are now hung with prominent 'private' signs - asked guy on tractor who said farmer (his dad) has stopped allowing access to the tomb. Not difficult to trespass to it, of course, but ..... . Disappointing, but perhaps not surprising (from the farmer's point of view) considering the closeness to the beach, and crops being grown in the fields.
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Re: Broadsands Chambered Tomb & 'nearby' missing standing stones of Torbay? by AngieLake on Friday, 13 January 2012
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Torbay is the area name for Torquay, Paignton and Brixham, and Broadsands chambered tomb stands near the coast between Paignton and Brixham.
The following article concerns a grisly legend about an ancient gallows site on the ring road that runs along high ground around the western outskirts of Torquay and Paignton.

To quote from the Herald Express online:

"The grisly history of Torbay's Gallows Gate

JUST by the roundabout at the top of Torquay’s Hamelin Way on the A380, at around 495 feet above sea level, is a small area called Gallows Gate.

In his latest article for http://www.thisissouthdevon.co.uk, local historian Dr Kevin Dixon explains the origins of a familiar landmark with a dark history.

As the name suggests, this was known as a place of public execution. Gallows were located at the edges of towns, by roads, or on hilltops, where victims could be seen. They were often permanent to act as a deterrent and a symbol of the power of justice. The French word for gallows, ‘potence’, comes from the Latin word potentia, meaning ‘power’.

Gallows rarely survive in the archaeological record, but they can be traced in place names. The Anglo Saxon name for gallows is ‘galga’, and gibbet is ‘gealga’, so ‘Gally’ would also indicate a place of execution. ‘Forches’, deriving from the Latin ‘furcus’, an old term for gallows, would indicate that Forches Cross near Newton Abbot was another edge-of-town location.

The site is on an ancient Ridgeway and where the four parishes of Cockington, Marldon, Kingskerswell and St Marychurch meet.

In 1436 the Cockington Manor Court referred to a ‘stope’, usually defined as a gibbet or whipping post which could be at Gallows Gate. A Marldon Tithe Map of 1839 shows a 3 cornered field called Gallows Gate Field. To the south is Dada Croft. ‘Daddy’ is Saxon for ‘dead’, so it’s reasonable to see the small enclosed field as a place reserved for the remains of those who died in the immediate area.

However, it’s generally thought that the original site of the gallows was 170 meters to the north of Gallows Gate, at Kingsland, the highest point and where the reservoir now is.

The Haytor Hundred is recorded as being held at Kingsland (the King’s Land). This would have seen gatherings of men called to fight and hold open air courts, as well as providing a good lookout for sighting hostile ships in the Bay. The partition of Devon into Hundreds dates from King Alfred (871-901) and so this could mean that the area had a thousand year history as a place of execution.

One suggestion is that the gallows were moved in the 1820s when public opinion began to turn against disorderly public hangings which could be seen for miles around.

In July 1964, and again in early 1965, deep chasms appeared near the summit of Kingsland Hill. The Water Board investigated and found two passages 12 meters below the surface and several hundred meters long. Fragments of bone and wood were found, indicating that at one time the pits were open.

It’s worth noting how widely the death penalty was used in medieval and early modern England, before the development of the prison system. During the reign of Henry VIII, for example, 72,000 people are estimated to have been executed.

By 1820, there were 160 crimes punishable by death, including shoplifting, petty theft, or cutting down trees in a public place.

Gallows Gate also had a gibbet, where executed criminals could be left to rot. Up to the late seventeenth century, live gibbeting also took place, in which the criminal was placed in a metal cage and left to die of thirst. Gibbeting became common in the mid-eighteenth century due to a perceived increase in murders, and was regularised in England by the Murder Act 1752. This Act stipulated that "in no case whatsoe

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Re: Broadsands Chambered Tomb's Near Neighbours by AngieLake on Wednesday, 16 June 2010
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On the visit to Torquay Museum I picked up a report titled: 'A Neolithic and Bronze Age Site at Churston, South Devon', written by 'Michael Parker Pearson', 'Reprinted from Devon Archaeological Society Proceedings No.39 1981'.
("Surface finds from a flint scatter at Churston Court Farm indicate prehistoric activity from the Early Neolithic to the Late Bronze Age. An intensive field survey and excavation were carried out to assess the nature of that activity and its consequent disturbance by ploughing.")

So this site, about 1.25 miles ESE from Broadsands Chambered Tomb as the crow flies, would have been busy in the same period that the tomb was in use. It is also very close to the sea at Churston Cove.
I noticed on the OS map that a footpath runs through the area, so may take a look one day.

Apparently eleven fields were involved in the fieldwalking (350 hectares in a long rectangular area orientated roughly SW to NE, walked by one person during 3 weeks in Spring 1977) but only two had trenches dug: three in one field, one in another.
I can't see a date for the excavations, but Mike Parker Pearson later says:
"The characterization of the finds from Churston demonstrates the involvement of its Neolithic population in exchange networks across south-west England. At least four of the stone axes found originated in Cornwall while two flint axes came most probably from the chalklands of southern England. Although all flint had to be brought to the site, only 5 fragments of Portland chert and 59 pieces of Beer flint were found in the survey."
Various flint tools and worked pebbles and arrowheads are discussed.
An illustration shows 8 stone axes, one of which was believed to be part of a ground adze or macehead.
Previous to the survey, two copper ingot fragments were found 50m apart in adjacent fields, later tested, and found to be very pure, like many Late Bronze Age ingots. MPP writes: "They are relatively rare in the South-West and have been found only at five other sites; Lelant, St.Hilary and Kenidjack in Cornwall and Mount Batten and Kent's Cavern in Devon. (Pearce 1976, 23-34)".

"The survey, excavation and programme of artefact examination were made possible through the help of Mr. David Fish of Churston Court Farm. All the finds are now in his possession."

(The 10-page report is available at Torquay Museum for £1:00.)
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Re: Broadsands Chambered Tomb by AngieLake on Tuesday, 15 June 2010
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Since adding the site info, I'd also Googled for the 'Monument Number 33025', and found it listed on another pdf file* on a page in [quotes in inverted commas]
"Durlston Head to Rame Head SMP 2 Appendix D - SEA Environmental Baseline Report (Theme Review)":

"Monument Number: 33025"
"Name: Chambered Tomb, 630m North West of Elberry Farm"
"Easting: 289319" [not sure why it's prefixed with a '2'?]
"Northing: 57329"
[That means the grid ref I supplied -SX893574- was a little bit closer in 'eastings']
"Area (Ha): 0.02007"
"Coastal Section: J"

*That is a very useful file for listings of monuments to go and explore in the Durlston Head to Rame Head area. I printed out two pages and each had 19/20 sites' refs.
No doubt someone will come up with a better listing for this site at Broadsands.
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Re: Broadsands Chambered Tomb by Andy B on Tuesday, 15 June 2010
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Angielake writes:
"The most important local site in South Devon" (next to Kent's Cavern) yet sadly neglected, this lovely old neolithic tomb lies overgrown with nettles and weeds in the hedge of a farmer's field.

It is situated on the [SE?] slopes of a hill that overlooks Broadsands, a popular local beach, yet few locals have ever heard of it. Though I did not have my compass with me, I'd guess it faced SE, though the large capstone had fallen [downslope] towards that direction. There are still some orthostats standing upslope of it, and others visible lying in the long grass. Looking over it towards the east, the waters of Tor Bay can be seen, and towards approx SW the village of Broadsands and, notably, the viaduct spanning the road to Broadsands Beach, carrying the Paignton & Dartmouth Steam railway.
I was fortunate to meet a lovely lady called Diana, who offered to show me the site. She had learned about it a few years previously, during a local protest against a proposal to build new homes in nearby fields. (This was turned down because of 'a nearby ancient monument'!)

It is reached by following a narrow track (by foot), at the end of the second car park behind the beach [just inland from the loos!], then going through a gate and bearing towards the right. As you climb up the hill in the next field, you'll see the gate to another field on the right, and going through this (there's a drystone wall just to your left here), the tomb will be noticeable in the hedge upslope.
A short-ish climb uphill brings you to the summit of the hill with a view towards the sea.

I first came across this information in Torquay Museum last Friday.
"One of the most important local sites is the small passage tomb 300 metres from the beach [a bit more than that!] at Broadsands. This is a unique construction for the whole southwest, and the oldest stone building in this part of Devon.
Built around 4,000 BC using 10 or 11 orthostats filled in with drystone walling and roofed using capstones, the largest weighing 6-7 tons.

The D-shaped chamber about 3m x 2m was entered along a short passage.
Its construction would have required a considerable community input and it would have marked the landscape, perhaps creating a sense of identity and territory.
The tomb only contained the remains of 4-5 people, although some bones may have been lost over time." [There is a photo of a display from Torquay Museum of a stone paving slab with two human leg bones lying on it.]* "It had a mixture of male, female and even child remains and appears to have different periods of use with a second phase of burial about 150 years after initial construction. The site then appears unused for burial for over 1,000 years, although the find of a pig bone dated to around 2,800 BC shows it may have been visited then."

* I'll post this photo up, but best to record here the caption:
"Human leg bones. A preserved stone paving slab from the Chamber Tomb at Broadsands. The slab has two human femur bones still embedded in soil that have been dated to 3768-3641 BC. Evidence from a stable isotope analysis shows that the occupants of the tomb had a diet almost wholly based on terrestrial foods, despite being buried and probably living so close to the sea. Excavation by C. Raleigh Radford in 1958."

I found a Torbay Local Plan pdf file by Googling, which had short descriptions of ancient sites. Though they quote the incorrect OS grid ref for this one, it does have the title "Broadsands Chambered Tomb", and "National Monument no. 33025"
"A Neolithic chambered passage tomb, originally larger, the circular cairn has been reduced by cultivation from 12m in diameter to around 7m north-south by 9m east-west. Excavation in 1958 revealed evidence of primary inhumations and later secondary burials and pottery. The site was probably disturbed during the medieval period when it was incorporated into the boundary between the parishes of Paignton and Brixham; it remains an administrative

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