<< Our Photo Pages >> Belstone Common Cairns - Cairn in England in Devon
Submitted by AngieLake on Tuesday, 13 November 2007 Page Views: 8076
Neolithic and Bronze AgeSite Name: Belstone Common Cairns Alternative Name: Cairn Circle Cullever Steps; Cullever Steps; Grinsell Belstone 2; Turner D11Country: England County: Devon Type: Cairn
Nearest Town: Okehampton Nearest Village: Belstone
Map Ref: SX6077491956
Latitude: 50.710519N Longitude: 3.973274W
Condition:
5 | Perfect |
4 | Almost Perfect |
3 | Reasonable but with some damage |
2 | Ruined but still recognisable as an ancient site |
1 | Pretty much destroyed, possibly visible as crop marks |
0 | No data. |
-1 | Completely destroyed |
5 | Superb |
4 | Good |
3 | Ordinary |
2 | Not Good |
1 | Awful |
0 | No data. |
5 | Can be driven to, probably with disabled access |
4 | Short walk on a footpath |
3 | Requiring a bit more of a walk |
2 | A long walk |
1 | In the middle of nowhere, a nightmare to find |
0 | No data. |
5 | co-ordinates taken by GPS or official recorded co-ordinates |
4 | co-ordinates scaled from a detailed map |
3 | co-ordinates scaled from a bad map |
2 | co-ordinates of the nearest village |
1 | co-ordinates of the nearest town |
0 | no data |
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I have visited· I would like to visit
Bladup would like to visit
stuartindigo visited on 20th Oct 2018 - their rating: Cond: 3 Amb: 4 Access: 3 Obviously damaged in antiquity, and not quite as impressive as it's near neighbour (the 9 stones), still well worth a look.
AngieLake have visited here
If you've visited Nine Stones near Belstone, walk further SSW (more than the distance already walked from Belstone village) and look out for Irishmans Wall, which decends east-west over the western side of Belstone Tor. The lower end of this wall is a good marker for the smallish ruined cairn circle.
In Butlers 'Dartmoor Atlas of Antiquities, Vol Two - The North', he mentions four cairns under the heading 'Belstone Common Cairns', including the Nine Stones. Giving that one ref. no. ‘13', he numbers this cairn ‘14'.
(From Belstone Nine Stones):
"Nearly a kilometre to the south-west on the almost flat ground near Cullever Steps is a smaller cairn circle, 14. About a third of the retaining circle is missing, the rest set as a kerb only 4.5m in diameter surrounding a substantial mound. A large block has been exposed in a deep pit at the centre and a flat slab 1.7 x 1.2m across, propped against the outside of the mound, may well be a displaced cist cover.
Nearby a flint knife of Early Bronze Age date was found lying on the surface after having been exposed by heavy rain.
Irishman's Wall can be seen descending Belstone Tor to the east, its foundations continuing across the valley floor to Cullever Steps and East Okement Farm, the latter built about 1878. It was erected in the early nineteenth century as the northern boundary of one of the largest enclosures attempted on the moor, 600 Ha. in extent. The wall continues southward over the tinners' mounds alongside the Black-a-Ven for three kilometres before accompanying the military track back to Steeperton Gorge on the Taw. Much of the enclosed area is within the Forest but also includes small parts of Belstone and Okehampton Commons. According to Crossing the commoners, not surprisingly objecting to this loss of their rights, pulled down their sections of walling before the circuit was completed."
Update September 2019: The ring cairn at SX 60787 91954 is featured on the Prehistoric Dartmoor Walks (PDW) website - see their entry for the Cullever Steps Ring Setting Cairn and Cist.
This site is also recorded as Pastscape Monument No. 444173, Devon and Dartmoor HER: MDV6867 (Ring cairn 230m south east of Cullever Steps, and scheduled as Historic England List ID 1017870 (Ring cairn 230m south east of Cullever Steps).
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Nearby sites listing. In the following links * = Image available
702m SSE 151° Winter Tor* Cist (SX6110291335)
998m NNE 26° Nine Stones (Belstone)* Stone Circle (SX6123192844)
1.3km NNE 31° Watchet Hill Cairn* Cairn (SX6147293042)
1.9km NE 35° Belstone Ring Cross* Ancient Cross (SX6192793500)
2.0km NE 38° Holy Well (Belstone)* Holy Well or Sacred Spring (SX6202393468)
2.2km NNW 349° East Hill Promontory Fort* Promontory Fort / Cliff Castle (SX604941)
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2.7km ENE 77° Cosdon Hill cairn 9* Round Cairn (SX63419250)
2.7km ENE 74° Sticklepath stone circle* Stone Circle (SX63439264)
2.9km E 98° Cosdon Hill Summit Cairns* Cairn (SX63619149)
3.3km WSW 237° Yes Tor cairns* Barrow Cemetery (SX57959020)
3.3km W 261° Black Down West Cairn (SX57469153)
3.4km SE 132° White Moor Down* Stone Circle (SX63288961)
3.5km SE 132° White Moor Cairn* Cairn (SX6330289534)
3.6km E 94° Cosdon Hill Cairn Circle* Stone Circle (SX64339159)
3.6km SE 132° White Moor Stone* Standing Stone (Menhir) (SX6335289476)
3.6km E 94° Cosdon Hill Multiple Stone Rows* Multiple Stone Rows / Avenue (SX64349159)
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3.7km SW 226° High Willhays North Ring Cairn (SX58028944)
3.8km E 80° Eight Rocks* Stone Circle (SX645925)
3.8km NE 53° Sticklepath Boundary Marker* Marker Stone (SX6388694135)
3.8km NE 54° Lady Well (Sticklepath)* Holy Well or Sacred Spring (SX6390494124)
3.9km SW 223° High Willhays kerb cairn* Round Cairn (SX58038922)
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