Neolithic Stone Circle, Exford

Grid reference SS843417

Map

Almsworthy Stone Circle is an ancient stone circle on Almsworthy Common to the east of Simonsbath, Exmoor. Not in the best state of preservation, only 13 stones remain erect, with several others lying prone. The stones range in height from a mere 15 cm tall to 60cm, and are typically spaced about 10 metres apart. Alderman's Round Barrow lies about half a mile away to the northwest.

Bronze Age Hill Fort, Bridgwater

Grid reference ST347289

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Athelney is the lowest known Hillfort in Britain. There are traces of Bronze Age as well as Iron Age occupation here. Otherwise known as the Isle of Athelney, it is best known for being the place where King Alfred the Great made his defence of Wessex against the Danes in 878 AD. If you believe the legend taught at childhood, it is also the place where he 'burned the cakes'.

Iron Age Hill Fort, Nailsea

Grid reference ST49406805

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The former site of an Iron Age hillfort. Unfortunately most of the site has been destroyed by quarrying.

Iron Age Hill Fort, Weston-super-Mare

Grid reference ST4085959047

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Banwell Camp is a univallate Iron Age hill fort in northeast Somerset. The hill fort is a Scheduled Monument and lies about one and a half miles east from the town of Banwell. Some artifacts found here date to the Bronze Age and even the Stone Age. In some places the hill fort is surrounded by a 13 foot high (4 metres) bank and ditch.

Iron Age Hill Fort, Dunster

Grid reference SS9865742221

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Formerly known as Caesar's Camp, Bats Castle is an Iron Age hill fort at the top of the 700 foot (213 metres) high Gallox Hill in the parish of Carhampton near Dunster. The site was first identified in 1983 after some schoolboys found eight silver plated coins dating from 102BC to AD350. It may be associated with Black Ball Camp. Bat's Castle has two stone ramparts and two ditches. The ramparts are damaged in places and the hillfort is partly covered in scrub.

Bat's Castle may once have been known as the legendary fortress Din Draithou, a place also associated with a fortress built or used by the legendary Irish king and raider Crimthann mac Fidaig.

Neolithic Long Barrow, Frome

Grid reference ST727517

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Big Tree Long Barrow lies on Buckland Down beside the A362 road running northwest from Frome to Radstock. Unfortunately, previous ploughing out of the site means that there is little to see at this site, only the outline of the barrow can be seen in the right conditions. Even the 'Big Tree', a large Elm tree that used to stand nearby is no longer.

Iron Age Hill Fort, Dunster

Grid reference SS9837542721

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Black Ball Camp is an Iron Age hill fort to the southwest of Dunster, in West Somerset. It lies on the northern summit of Gallox Hill and is a Scheduled Ancient Monument. It is also known as British Camp and is possibly associated with the nearby Bat's Castle.

It has a 10 foot (3 metre) high rampart and a 7 foot (2 metre) deep ditch.

At the beginning of the 20th century the foundations of a stone tower were visible however this is no longer the case.

Iron Age Hill Fort, Radstock

Grid reference ST6355650216

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Blackers Hill at Chilcompton is an Iron Age hill fort about 3 miles southwest of Radstock. It is designated as a Scheduled Ancient Monument.

The hillfort is roughly rectangular and is a promontary type covering about 15 acres (6 hectares).

It originally consisted of two ramparts and two ditches, but on the west and south sides it was defended by the steep drop. In some places the ramparts survive to a considerable height but on the north east side the inner rampart and ditch have been destroyed. There are three gaps but only that on the east seems to be original.

In 1999 a geophysical survey was carried out suggesting that Blackers Hill originated as a univallate structure and was then later modified, forming a developed hillfort.

Iron Age Hill Fort, Weston super Mare

Grid reference ST293588

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Brean Down is a promontory off the coast of Somerset standing 320 feet (98 m) high and extending 1.5 miles (2 km) into the Bristol Channel at the eastern end of Bridgwater Bay between Weston-super-Mare and Burnham-on-Sea. Made of carboniferous limestone, it is a continuation of the Mendip Hills, and two further continuations are the small islands of Steep Holm and Flat Holm. It is now owned by the National Trust, and is rich in wildlife, history and archaeology. It is a Site of Special Scientific Interest. There is evidence of a pagan shrine at Brean Down dating from pre-Roman times which was re-established as a Romano-Celtic style temple in the mid-4th century and probably succeeded by a small late-4th century Christian oratory. Several Roman finds including gold coins of Augustus, Nero, and Drusus, two silver denarii of Vespasian and a Roman cornelian ring were found at the site during quarrying. There is also evidence of an Iron age hill fort and prehistoric barrows and field systems.

Bronze Age Hill Fort, Burnham-on-Sea

Grid reference ST341510

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Brent Knoll Hillfort stands like a beacon amongst the low lying land of the Somerset Levels to the east of Burnham-on-Sea. A landmark highly visible from the M5 motorway, the hill would have been an island in Prehistoric times. Dating from the Bronze Age, it has stone and rubble ramparts situated on the western side of the hill. The knoll has been worked by man over the centuries so that there are now layers of archaeology to sift through. The Romans are known to have built a temple here as well as their own fortifications. They knew Brent Knoll as 'The Mount of Frogs', although others claim the knoll to be Mount Badon - Mons Badoni. It stands 137 metres high.

Iron Age Hill Fort, Dulverton

Grid reference SS8823529820

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Brewer's Castle is an Iron Age hill fort in West Somerset. It lies about 2 miles (3.2 km) west of Dulverton.

The settlement survives as an earthwork situated on Hawkridge Ridge Wood. It also lies very close to Mounsey Castle.

Iron Age Hill Fort, Taunton

Grid reference ST2156432108

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Also known as Higher Castles enclosure, Broomfield Camp is a univallate Iron Age hill fort in the Taunton Deane district of West Somerset. It lies just over half a mile (0.97 km) southeast of Broomfield village.

Broomfield Camp dates from late prehistoric or Roman times. The camp was excavated in 1968 uncovering a trench through a bank and ditch which contained Iron Age pottery.

Iron Age Hill Fort, Bristol

Grid reference ST5626672793

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Burgh Walls Camp is a multivallate Iron Age hill fort in the northeast Somerset, near Bristol. The hill fort lies in Leigh Woods about one and a half miles (2.6 km) northeast of Long Ashton village.

The hillfort is also known as Bower Walls Camp, Burwalls, or Bowre Walls. Burgh Walls Camp is one of three Iron Age fortifications overlooking the Avon Gorge, the others being Stokeleigh Camp and Clifton Camp on the opposite side of the gorge, on Clifton Down near the Observatory.

Iron Age Hill Fort, Bristol

Grid reference ST588587

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Burledge Hill Fort is an univallate Iron Age hill fort situated on the southern edge of the village of Bishop Sutton in northeast Somerset. It is also a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI).

Iron Age Hill Fort, Congresbury

Grid reference ST4848158686

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Formerly known as Burrington Ham, Burrington Camp is a Iron Age hill fort in North Somerset. The hill fort lies on the Mendip Hills about half a mile (0.97 km) south of the village of Burrington.

The camp overlooks Burrington Combe, where there have been archaeological discoveries of cemeteries, demonstrating a very long human occupation of the area. The hill fort has an oval shape and is univallate.

Prior to the 20th century, the camp was thought to be Roman.

Iron Age Hill Fort, Dulverton

Grid reference SS9379726899

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Bury Castle is an Iron Age hill fort and 12th medieval century castle near Selworthy, Somerset.

Bronze Age Barrow, Bristol

Grid reference ST516627

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Butcombe Round Barrow is a Bronze Age bowl barrow situated to the southwest of Bicknell Farm, in the village of Redhill. The barrow has a diameter of about 25 metres and was formerly surrounded by an external ditch, traces of which still survive. The centre of the barrow has been robbed out - usually by past treasure hunters. It is also recorded that a windmill was built on this site some time in the thirteenth century. Less than a kilometre away to the southeast lies Fairy Toot barrow.

Iron Age Hill Fort, Clevedon

Grid reference ST442649

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Cadbury Hill Fort lies to the southeast of the village of Yatton near Congresbury, in North Somerset. Officially known as the Cadbury-Congresbury Hillfort it should not be confused with South Cadbury Fort near Yeovil. There are some excellent views from the summit with ramparts built in the Iron Age. The ramparts defend an interior of about three and a half hectares (8.5 acres), with traces of Iron Age round houses still visible. It is thought that the fortifications were added to in about 400AD and also that it was occupied after the withdrawal of the Romans. The site was excavated between 1968 and 1973, with large numbers of Mediterranean pottery sherds and amphorae unearthed.

Bronze Age Hill Fort, Bridgwater

Grid reference ST2442640603

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Cannington Camp is a Bronze Age and Iron Age hill fort near Cannington in Somerset. It is designated as a Scheduled Ancient Monument. The camp lies on a small hill some 260 feet (80 metres) above low lying land, about a mile (1.5 km.) west of the tidal estuary of the River Parrett, near the ancient port and ford at Combwich.

The hill fort is roughly square in shape, with a single rampart (univallate) enclosing 12 acres (5 ha.) and the main entrance to the south-east. The north side of the hill has been destroyed by quarrying during the 19th and 20th centuries.

Minor excavations were carried out in 1905, 1913 (Bezell), and 1963 (Rahtz). Flint tools, scrapers and flakes have been found on or near the hill, indicating Mesolithic (Middle Stone Age) occupation. Bronze Age finds include an axe head and a knife. The area destroyed by quarrying was a late Roman and Saxon cemetery, with several hundred E-W (Christian) graves, and various grave goods such as coins and pottery from the period 350-800 AD.

It is probably the site of Cynwit Castle (otherwise known as Cynuit, Cynwith, Cynwits) and the Battle of Cynwit between Saxons and Vikings in 878 AD. It may also be the location of an earlier battle in 845 AD, when the Saxons were led by Eanwulf and Ealstan, Bishop of Sherborne.

Post Roman Menhir, Winsford

Grid reference SS88973355

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The Caratacus Stone is an inscribed stone on Exmoor in Somerset, thought to date from the 6th century. The inscription, written in Latin, reads CARAACI NEPVS ('kinsman of Caratacus') and is thought to have been built either as a memorial or as a boundary stone.

The first mention of the stone dates from 1206, when it is described as 'the Langeston'. In 1890, the letter 'N' was missing from the inscription. In 1906 a shelter was erected over the stone and by 1919, it had been cemented back in place. An excavation in 1937 revealed that the stone was not erected over a burial site.

Some accounts hold that the inscription should actually read CARATACI NEPVS, with the letters 'A' and 'T' forming a ligature.

Iron Age Hillfort, Taunton

Grid reference ST272158

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Castle Neroche is a Norman motte-and-bailey castle on the site of an earlier hill fort near Staple Fitzpaine, Somerset, England. The hill rises to 260 m on the northern escarpment of the Blackdown Hills. The castle was probably built by Robert of Mortain in the 11th century and probably went out of use in the 12th. The site was excavated by Mr. H. St. George Gray in 1903. There have also been nearby archaeological finds of Mesolithic flints, and a Bronze Age copper axe found in 1857, but nothing from the Iron Age or Roman periods Castle Neroche, known locally as Castle Rache (and the summit is known as The Beacon), has been described as a prehistoric earthwork later formed into a medieval castle. It occupies a promontory and there are four concentric lines of earthwork defences with a small motte (possibly with a stone shell keep) and bailey set into a corner of an earlier enclosure. A C19 farmhouse and garden occupy part of the area. Iron arrowheads, an iron sword blade and inhumation burials (one said to have been in a wooden coffin) were found before 1854. Warre's plan shows the burials at ST27131580 under the northern farmbuildings (which are not on Warre's plan). The sword findspot is shown at the crest of the hill to the E close to some pits which are described as having an inverted cone shape 8-10 feet in diameter and 7-8 feet deep and filled with lighter coloured soil.

Iron Age Hill Fort, Wellington

Grid reference ST0566324511

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Castles Camp is a univallate Iron Age hill fort situated roughly midway between Waterrow and Bathealton villages in West Somerset. A few trees a scattered around the camp's defences along with Roman coins have been found.

Iron Age Hill Fort, Axbridge

Grid reference ST5051355992

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Charterhouse Camp is a univallate Iron Age hill fort in the Mendip district of Somerset. It lies about half a mile east of Charterhouse village. There is some evidence, in the form of burials in local caves, of human occupation since the late Neolithic times and the early Bronze Age.

Roman Settlement, Axbridge

Grid reference ST503558

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Charterhouse Roman Town was a town in the Roman province of Britannia. Its site is located just to the west of the village of Charterhouse-on-Mendip, near Cheddar in East Somerset.

Its Latin name may have been Iscalis, but this is far from certain. An alternative, based on inscriptions on a pig of Roman lead BRIT. EX. ARG. VEB, meaning "British (lead) from the VEB... lead-silver works" would suggest the name VEB for the site. This may explain the nearby village of Ubley, as V and U are interchangeable in Latin, Ubley may have derived from Veb-ley, and was originally a settlement where Romano-British lead miners lived. The Roman landscape has been designated as a Scheduled Ancient Monument

The settlement grew up around the north-western edge of prehistoric lead and silver mines, which were exploited by the Romans. Mendip lead ore had up to 0.4% silver content, which the Romans used to pay the army. Extraction is thought to have begun as early as AD 49 (although the evidence of dateable lead ingots found in the neighbourhood has recently been questioned.) At first the lead and silver industries were tightly controlled by the Roman military in the south-west, by the Second Legion and there was a small 'fortlet' adjoining the mines during the 1st century, which may, however, have been little more than a fortified compound for storing lead pigs.

After a short time, the extraction of these metals was contracted out to civilian companies, probably because of low silver content. Smelting was undertaken on site where industrial workshops have been excavated and the metal exported along a minor road to the Fosse Way, and probably through a small inland port at nearby Cheddar.

Paleolithic Cave, Cheddar

Grid reference ST472543

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One of the main structures within the Cheddar Gorge is Gough's Cave. Named after Victorian former sea captain Richard Gough. He excavated the silt from the cave entrance between 1890 and 1898, his labours literally unearthed the huge chambers of St. Paul's Cathedral and the Diamond Chamber. The cave is thought to have formed between 500,000 years and 15,000 years ago by the action of water dissolving the limestone rock. Over the years the water level fell, causing the cave mouth to silt up. In the region of 250,000 years ago, water rich in calcium dripped through cracks in the the cave roof forming the beautiful stalactites and stalagmites we see today. Early humans lived in the cave entrance, during the Late Upper Palaeolithic (Old Stone Age). In about 7000BC a Mesolithic hunter-gatherer, known today as "Cheddar Man", was buried here in mysterious circumstances. His is the oldest complete skeleton ever found in Britain.

Iron Age Hill Fort, Wiveliscombe

Grid reference ST0422731516

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Clatworthy Camp is an Iron Age hill fort 3 miles (4.8 km) northwest of Wiveliscombe. It is designated as a Scheduled Ancient Monument and is situated on a promontory of the Brendon Hills above Clatworthy Reservoir.

The camp is roughly triangular in shape with an area of 14 acres (5.8 ha.). It has a single bank and ditch, cut through solid rock. There may have been an entrance on the west and two on the east.

Bronze Age Settlement, Nailsea

Grid reference ST463657

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Cleeve Toot is a semi-circular enclosure or settlement thought to date from the Late Bronze /Early Iron Age. A semicircular earthwork some 125 metres x 90 metres in diameter contains humps and depressions that suggest the sites of former hut circles and storage pits.

Archaeologically this area is rich in finds lying within the immediate vicinity of Stanton Drew and the Mendip Barrow cemeteries.

Iron Age Hill Fort, Bristol

Grid reference ST4963175109

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Conygar Hillfort is a small multivallate Iron Age hill fort in North Somerset. It is designated as a Scheduled Ancient Monument.

The hill fort is situated half a mile south of Portbury village near Bristol. The fort is triangular in shape and there are the remains of a 3 feet (0.91 m) high bank on the south-western side.

Iron Age Hill Fort, Simonsbath

Grid reference SS795374

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Situated on the footpath between Simonsbath and Landacre Bridge in the west of Exmoor, Cow Castle is a small Iron Age hill fort on top of a rocky outcrop in the River Barle valley. The hill is nothing special and although it is dwarfed by the surrounding moors it does command the low ground immediately around it. A pleasant rather than outstanding site.

Iron Age Hill Fort, Shepton Mallet

Grid reference ST6696035605

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Creech Hill is a univallate Iron Age hill fort in southeast Somerset. It lies just over a mile west of Bruton. The site was first identified from aerial photography in 1926.

Iron Age Hill Fort, Minehead

Grid reference SS9868942165

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Croydon Hill is a univallate Iron Age hill fort enclosure in West Somerset. It lies about a mile (1.6 km) west of Dunster. The hill fort has been damaged in recent years due to forestry plantation.

Neolithic Stone Row, Porlock

Grid reference SS832473

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Culbone Hill Stone Row is a 365 metre long stone row aligned east to west located in private woodland near Porlock. There are about 13 of the original stones remaining, none taller than one metre high.

Iron Age Hill Fort, Minehead

Grid reference ST0967638123

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Curdon Camp is a univallate Iron Age hill fort just under a mile (1.3 km) northwest of Stogumber village in West Somerset. It is a Scheduled Ancient Monument. The camp has been nearly completely destroyed by quarrying and bulldozing. The section of the camp remaining stands 2.5 metres (8.2 ft) high on the southern and western sides.

Iron Age Cliff Castle, Watchet

Grid reference ST0605943378

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Daw's Castle otherwise known as Dart's Castle and Dane's Castle, is an Iron Age cliff castle or fort just west of Watchet in West Somerset. It is designated as a Scheduled Ancient Monument.

The name comes from Thomas Dawe, who owned Castell Field in 1537. The fort is situated on an east-west cliff about 80 metres (260 ft) above the sea, on a tapering spur of land bounded by the Washford River to the south, as it flows to the sea at Watchet, about half a mile east. The ramparts of the fort would have formed a semicircle backing on to the sheer cliffs, but coastal erosion has reduced the size of the enclosure, and later destruction by farming, limekilns, and the B3191 road, have left only about 300 metres (980 ft) of ramparts visible today.

Neolithic Menhir, Westbury sub Mendip

Grid reference ST518486

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Deerleap Standing Stones are a pair of Standing Stones situated in a field near Ebbor Gorge car park. It is very worthwhile checking out these stones as they are set in a spectacular location. They stand high on the southwestern flanks of the Mendip Hills and offer wide-ranging views to the Bristol Channel, the Quantock Hills and the Polden Hills. Exmoor can also be seen in the distance on a clear day. Glastonbury Tor rises from the Somerset Levels below the site.

Iron Age Hill Fort, Weston-super-Mare

Grid reference ST44455915

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Dinghurst fort is an Iron Age univallate hillfort south of Churchill in Somerset. A scarp encircles the camp, 2.0 metres (6.5 ft) high in the east and 3.0 metres (9.8 ft) high in the west. The fort is also surrounded by a fosse. Bones, rings, and weapons have been found inside the fort.

This suspected Iron Age hillfort has now been mostly quarried away. In 1836, it was observed to be surrounded by a vallum with double agger and fosse; rings, weapons and bones having been found there. The situation may have been suitable for a prehistoric enclosure but quarrying has completely obliterated all traces of an earthwork other than the bank shown on Ordnance Survey 25 inch map of 1885. The North end of this has been cut away by quarrying and it consists of a scarp 2.0 metres high on the East side. This continues to the South for 70.0 metres and then fades to terminate near the bridle road. The inner or West face of the bank is up to 3.0 metres high, the result of quarrying. It is uncertain, and even doubtful, whether the bank is part of the camp described by Phelps.

Iron Age Hill Fort, Weston-super-Mare

Grid reference ST455590

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Dolebury Warren is the remains of an Iron Age partly bivallate hillfort near the village of Churchill in North Somerset. Finds recovered from the interior include Bronze Age pottery and a spearhead, and a Roman coin. Other features include pillow mounds, cultivation remains and quarries, which are now recorded separately.

There is evidence of occupation of the site during the Iron Age and as a medieval/post medieval rabbit warren.

It is designated as a Scheduled Ancient Monument (No: 194279). The defences and Celtic field systems at Dolebury date back to the 4th century-3rd century BCE, though they might mask earlier developments. The rectangular fort commands views over the surrounding countryside. It was protected by a limestone rampart with a ditch and counterscarp on all sides but the South. There is an inturned entrance on the West and an annexe of 0.4 hectare protecting the easier Eastern approach. In addition to the remains of double ramparts of an Iron Age hill fort still being visible there is also evidence of a medieval rabbit warren.

Dolbury Warren is a 90.6 hectare biological Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), notified in 1952. It is owned by the National Trust and managed by the Avon Wildlife Trust.

Iron Age Hill Fort, Minehead

Grid reference ST15903917

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Dowsborough Camp, otherwise known as Danesborough or Dawesbury Camp, is an Iron Age hill fort on the Quantock Hills near Nether Stowey in Somerset. It has been designated as a Scheduled Ancient Monument.

The site is at a height of 340 m on an easterly spur from the main Quantock ridge, with views north to the Bristol Channel, and east over the valley of the River Parrett.

The fort has an oval shape, with a single rampart and ditch (univallate) following the contours of the hill top, enclosing an area of 2.7 ha. The main entrance is to the east, towards Nether Stowey, with a simpler opening to the north-west, aligned with a ridgeway leading down to Holford. The Lady's Fountain springs are in the combe to the west. A col to the south connects the hill to the main Stowey ridge, where a linear earthwork known as Dead Woman's Ditch cuts across the spur. This additional rampart would have provided an extra line of defence against attack from the main Quantock ridge to the west, and it could have been a tribal boundary.

Additional elements include trial pits for stone/copper ore, a charcoal burning platform and evidence of WWII activity. There is the possiblity of a late Roman/post-Roman phase at the site. The site has been recorded on aerial photographs.

Iron Age Hill Fort, Somerton

Grid reference ST48493217

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Dundon Hill Hillfort is an Iron Age hillfort in Compton Dundon, Somerset, England. It has been designated as a Scheduled Ancient Monument. Southeast of the site is a Bronze Age bowl barrow which was later modified as a Norman Motte, known as Dundon Beacon. The 5 hectare (12 acres) site is guarded by a single bank ranging from 0.5 metres (1.6 ft) to 2.5 metres (8.2 ft) high, however parts of the site have been damaged by quarrying. Flint flakes, Bronze Age pottery, and Iron Age pottery have also been found, which are now in the Museum of Somerset.

Dundon Hill, also sometimes called Dundon Beacon, stands out prominently in the flat country of King's Sedgemoor, rising to a height of 270 feet. One writer on ancient earthworks notes that it "looks like a respectable mountain and is in fact a natural island fortress". The whole of the hilltop is enclosed by the single bank of stones and earth

This consists of a bank of stones along the edge of the hill, the outer face of the hill top being steeply scarped. On the NW the bank has disappeared and there is only the scarp. Along the E side, about 16 ft. below the top of the bank, is a ledge below which the ground falls away steeply. The entrance was about the middle of this side, but has been much altered. Several flint flakes, a core and scrapers, also a few pieces of Bronze Age pottery have been recovered.

Neolithic Cave, Wells

Grid reference ST525486

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Ebbor Gorge is a limestone gorge in Somerset, situated near the City of Wells. It is designated as a 63.5-hectare (157-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in the Mendip Hills. Two thirds of the gorge is owned by the National Trust, and managed by English Nature as a National Nature Reserve. There are three marked trails of varying lengths around the steeply wooded gorge, the shortest of which is suitable for wheelchair users. Various caves within the gorge were inhabited by Neolithic people. The cave known as Bridged Pot is on record as having one of the best assemblages of small mammal remains found in Britain. Remains include steppe pika, arctic lemming, Norway lemming, various voles, red deer and reindeer. The small cave/rock shelter at Savoy's Hole contains largely undisturbed deposits likely to yield a similar assemblage of Devensian age.

Iron Age Hill Fort, Weston-super-Mare

Grid reference ST36955827

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Elborough Hill is an univallate Iron Age hill fort situated approximately 1.2 miles (1.9 km) east from the small village of Hutton and 1 mile (1.6 km) south from the village of Elborough in the North Somerset district. The site is oval shaped and is defined by a triple bank on the northern side with a double out-turned bank on the southern side

An Iron Age hillfort and an associated Iron Age or Romano-British field system is visible on aerial photographs as earthworks. The site extends over an area which measures 257 metres north-south and 302 metres east-west. The site comprises a bivallate hillfort with an elaborate entranceway and seven lynchets or field boundaries. The hillfort extends over an area which measures 150 metres east-west and 85 metres north-south. The hillfort is oval in shape, with the longer axis oriented WNW-ESE. The entrance faces WNW, and is defined by a triple bank on the northern side and a double out-turned bank on the southern side. The northern and southern sides of the hillfort appear to be mostly defined by natural scarps, although a narrow ditch is visible extending along the northern side. A section of linear bank which measures 33 metres long and 3 metres wide extends along the southern side of the hillfort.

The seven lynchets or field boundaries extend across the NE facing slope to the north and west of the hillfort. The field system is coaxial, with lynchets oriented NNW-SSE and WNW-ESE. At least five fields are defined which measure between 12 and 45 metres wide and up to 87 metres in length. 3rd to 4th century pottery had been found on the surface of one of these fields.

Neolithic Menhir, Lynton

Grid reference SS820411

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Elsworthy Standing Stone is a gritstone pillar standing 1.5 metres high. It is 0.6 metres wide by 0.4 metres thick, and tapers slightly at the top. The stone has recently fallen, knocked over by over zealous cattle who regularly use it as a rubbing post. It has now been re-erected with a cement base.

Iron Age Hill Fort, Wiveliscombe

Grid reference ST07053370

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Elworthy Barrows is an unfinished Iron Age hill fort rather than Bronze Age barrows, which has been designated as a Scheduled Ancient Monument (No:188401). It is located in the civil parish of Brompton Ralph near Wiveliscombe.

The remains are circular in plan, cover an area of approximately 3.5 hectares. The enclosure is defined by defences comprising a bank and outer ditch. The northern defences are less advanced than elsewhere, comprising a bank with a narrow break in its length, flanked by a series of shallow quarry ditches. The eastern defences are defined by a bank, berm and shallow outer ditch with an overall width of 22 metres. An inturned entrance is also present. The southern defences are thought to be complete and comprise a bank up to 6 metres in height with an outer ditch up to 4.5 metres wide. There are also traces of an outer bank. A possible entrance has also been recorded.

Surface finds recovered include a polished stone axe, cores, leaf-shaped arrowheads and flint implements. The earthworks are clearly visible on aerial photographs from the 1940s onwards.

Neolithic Long Barrow, Bristol

Grid reference ST520618

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Fairy Toot is the remains of a long barrow near the village of Nempnett Thrubwell in North Somerset. The barrow is in a poor state of preservation due to some 'excavations' carried out in 1789. With dimensions of about 60 metres by 25 metres wide, and aligned N-S, the barrow is thought to date from the Neolithic. What remains is now largely flattened rubble with trees and scrub growing on it. Within the centre of the barrow are remains of a sheep shed or suchlike, almost certainly built using stones from the barrow. However, at the north end is a small insight into the probable glory of its original form, where a couple of small mounds remain under the roots of trees. These remains are over 2m in height, and are clearly seen to have the outer face constructed of drystone walling. In fact, it is possible to make out the remains of what was possibly an opening of some sort and what was possibly a chamber entrance, but it is always possible that these are more modern alterations. It is recorded that an excavation in 1788 produced evidence of a gallery with several chambers, and remains of skeletons were found.

Iron Age Settlement, Glastonbury

Grid reference ST493407

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The remains of Glastonbury Lake Village were identified in 1892, showing that there was an Iron Age settlement about 300–200 BC on what was an easily defended island in the fens. Earthworks and Roman remains prove later occupation. Very little remains of this Iron Age Lake Village, which is owned by the Glastonbury Antiquarian Society, but many of the finds from the site are on display in the Glastonbury Lake Village Museum in Glastonbury High Street.

Neolithic Tor, Glastonbury

Grid reference ST512386

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Glastonbury Tor is as enigmatic now as it has ever been. The site is known to have been occupied from at least the New Stone Age as Neolithic flint tools have been discovered on the top of the Tor. Excavations between 1964 and 1966, unearthed evidence of habitation surrounding the medieval church of St. Michael. The finds included postholes, two hearths including a metalworker's forge, two burials oriented north-south, so unlikely to be Christian, fragments of 6th century Mediterranean amphorae, and a worn hollow bronze head which may have topped a Saxon staff. The plain surrounding the Tor was often flooded hence an old name for the Tor being 'Isle of Glass'. The remains of St. Michaels Church sit atop the Tor, destroyed in an earthquake on 11th September 1275.

Iron Age Hill Fort, Minehead

Grid reference SS98294365

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Grabbist hillfort is an Iron Age oval hillfort west of Dunster. The fort is 885.8 feet (270.0 m) long and 219.8 feet (67.0 m) wide, and is surrounded by a counterscarp, which measures 4.2 to 6.2 feet (1.3 to 1.9 m) in height. It is also surrounded by a ditch, which ranges up to 32.8 feet (10.0 m) wide and 7.2 feet (2.2 m) deep. The bank has a peak height of 9.8 feet (3 m), and, on the northern and western sides, there is a second bank, which leads to the northeastern corner being the most strongly defended.

A later field boundary extends around much of the inner edge of the hillfort, and may be associated with an area of medieval or post medieval cultivation represented by traces of ridge and furrow within the enclosure.

Although situated at the end of a steep sided, narrow ridge, this feature is not a defensive earthwork and it does not appear to be prehistoric. In spite of a slight bank and shallow outer ditch at its western end it looks like a lynchet. Traces of narrow rig and furrow on the ridge above it suggest that it may be the lyncheted boundary to an area of cultivation, and may be of late Medieval origin. The enclosure on Grabbist Hill is centred at SS98304367. It lies on the southeastern edge of the hill at 170m OD, commanding views over Dunster to the enclosures on Gallox Hill. The site was surveyed at a scale of 1:1000 using GPS and EDM as part of the RCHME Exmoor Project.

The nature and scale of the earthworks, combined with their location both topographically and in their proximity to the enclosures on Gallox Hill, suggest that the site is an Iron Age defended enclosure. Cultivation has taken place on the site; this probably occurred in the medieval or post medieval period, although no map evidence for this was found.

Bronze Age Hill Fort, Yeovil

Grid reference ST4828516401

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Ham Hill Hillfort is an Iron Age hillfort located on Ham Hill, Somerset, England. It was also occupied during the mesolithic and neolithic periods and later during Roman and medieval eras.

The fort is a Scheduled Ancient Monument and the whole of the hill is a geological Site of Special Scientific Interest; a Country Park operated by South Somerset Council, and is visited by over 250,000 people each year.

It covers an area of 210 acres (85 ha), making it one of the largest hillforts in Britain. It is the only one with a public house in its interior.

The hill rises to 400 feet (120 m) above sea level and towers over the surrounding Parrett and Yeo river valleys. The 3 miles (5 km) of ramparts enclose an area of 210 acres (85 ha). The southern part is a rectangle approximately 800 metres (2,600 ft) by 1,000 metres (3,300 ft) with a northern spur 600 metres (2,000 ft) by 400 metres (1,300 ft) making an irregular L shape. Most of the perimeter is a double bank and ditch (multivallate), with some of the banks being up to 12 metres (39 ft) high.

There is a major entrance to the south-east, on the line of the modern road, and another to the north-east, following a track from the Church of St Mary the Virgin at East Stoke in Stoke-sub-Hamdon.

The site was occupied during the mesolithic and neolithic periods and then by the Durotriges tribe from the 1st century BC.

Archaeological finds, which date the original occupation to the 7th century BC, include bronze-work, chariot parts, iron currency bars, gold and silver coins, cremations and burials. A Glastonbury type pot has also been recovered. The site was also important during the Roman era, with many finds indicating that there was a building on the site, possibly a Roman villa. It may also have been the site of a fort that provided a point of control for the Fosse Way. Roman coins, dating from the time of Domitian to Constantine the Great, were contained in a crock found during the 19th century. Other finds include a vessel containing 338 sestertii, which were given to the Museum of Somerset in 1915 by W. R. Phelps, and two other similar pots of coins that together contained slightly over 1,000 coins from Republican Rome to the time of Postumus, which must have been buried at some time after 260. Damaged bronze scales of lorica squamata, a type of scale armour, have also been found.

There is less evidence from the Saxon era, although the site might have been occupied during that period. It was definitely occupied during medieval times and was the site of the deserted hamlet of South Ameldon, which hosted an annual fair and court from 1102 until the 17th century.

Finds from Ham Hill indicate a Bronze Age settlement established during the seventh century BC with evidence of metalworking on site. Inhumations also recovered. There is no structural evidence of a Bronze Age settlement or Bronze Age phase to the hillfort on Ham Hill, but this is indicated due to a large number of finds recovered either as isolated finds or from excavated contexts. This absence is mainly due to the presence of limestone quarries within the hillfort interior. Finds recovered include flint implements, a range of copper alloy tools, and axe moulds (ST 41 NE 62) and middle-later Bronze Age pottery. Several inhumations have also been recorded. The Archaeological field survey of Ham Hill, carried out by the RCHME between 1990 and 1997, led to a full review of the archaeology of the hillfort and its immediate vicinity.

Iron Age Hill Fort, Yeovil

Grid reference ST482165

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Otherwise known as Ham Hill, this Iron Age Hillfort lies to the west of Montacute, near Yeovil. Possibly the largest hillfort in England, its ramparts are three miles in length and enclose an area of 210 acres. Technically termed a bivallate hillfort, its third bank and ditch lie lower down on its flanks. The site, now a country park, commands 360 degree views of the surrounding countryside, and is well worth a visit. The best way to explore the area is to walk around the northern end, passing the war memorial.

Bronze Age Barrow, Radworthy

Grid reference SS746362

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Otherwise known as Two Barrows, these Round Barrows lie just to the northeast of Fyldon Common on the western flanks of Exmoor just inside the Somerset border with Devon. The closest settlements are Radworthy and Simonsbath.

Iron Age Hill Fort, Radstock

Grid reference ST6337958064

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Highbury Hill in Clutton, Somerset is the site of the earthwork remains of an Iron Age univallate hillfort. It occupies an area of woodland at the end of a narrow ridge. It is a Scheduled Ancient Monument. The 3 hectares (7.4 acres) site lies in an area of woodland at the south eastern end of a narrow ridge with steep slopes around it. There is a 0.5 metres (1.6 ft) outer bank which is 8 metres (26 ft) long with a shallow 8 metres (26 ft) wide ditch. Some Roman silver coins were found at the site in the late 18th century.

Neolithic Stone Row, Lynton

Grid reference SS77074368

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Hoccombe Hill Stone Row is a double Stone Row northeast of Brendon Two Gates, on the southern facing slopes above Hoccombe Water on Brendon Common, Exmoor. The site consists of three large stones remaining erect along with one stone lying prone. The stones stand about a metre tall and are set in a zig-zag pattern.

Iron Age Hill Fort, Bruton

Grid reference ST747335

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Kenwalch's Castle is probably an Iron Age hill fort that may have been converted into a Roman fortress in Penselwood, Somerset, England, 6.6 kilometres (4 mi) East South East of Bruton at grid reference ST747335. It is situated in Castle Wood which covers its defences and interior. The latter has an area of 1.6 hectares (4.0 acres). There is a single rampart and ditch which are well preserved in places. The road north from Penselwood village crosses the hillfort and probably passes through the original entrances.

It is a Scheduled Ancient Monument and is believed to be the site of the Battle of Peonnum.

This hillfort occupies the full width of the flat top of a north-south ridge and, to east and west, the bank is atop steep slopes. The gaps through which the modern road passes are wider than the road and there can be little doubt that they are original entrances.

The hillfort is trapezoidal in shape and 1.6ha in extent. The enclosure is univallate with an internal bank and external ditch. Along the straightened SE side the defences attain massive proportions relative to the area enclosed. Morphologically, the SE side of the hillfort is similar to a cross-ridge dyke in that it severely restricts access along the ridge top. It could be postulated that this section of the defences was originally a cross-ridge dyke. There are two entrances in the enclosure circuit. The modern road is routed through them, as is the county boundary bank and another parallel bank. Given the topographical location of the enclosure, it is possible that both entrances are original features. At the N end, for example, both sets of bank and ditch terminals appear rounded and undamaged. No internal detail was noted.

Neolithic Hill Fort, Wiveliscombe

Grid reference ST096282

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King's Castle is a Neolithic hillfort 1 kilometre (0.62 mi) east of Wiveliscombe. It is surrounded by two banks with a ditch between them. The inner wall ranges up to 2.5 metres (8.2 ft) high and the outer wall gets up to 1.5 metres (4.9 ft) high. Arrowheads, scrapers, and borers have been found at the site. A coin hoard of 1139 coins was found in a pot buried 0.30 metres (1 ft) deep.

The site has been heavily damaged by repeated quarrying and ploughing. It is also heavily wooded. Human remains were found in 1914 but have not been dated.

Various Neolithic flints including arrowheads, borers, scrapers, cores, blades and a knife have been found on the surface and were deposited with Taunton Museum. Two hoards of roman coins have also been found.

Iron Age Hill Fort, Radstock

Grid reference ST71885172

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Kingsdown Camp is an Iron Age hill fort at Buckland Dinham 3 miles (4.8km) southeast of Radstock. It is a Scheduled Ancient Monument. It is a univallate fort with an area of 0.15 hectares (0.37 acre), and is approximately quadrilateral in shape.

In the Iron Age or Roman period a drystone wall was constructed, possibly 4 metres (13 ft) high and 2.5 metres (8 ft) wide. There is an entrance on the northeast side. The fort continued to be used by the Romans.

Kingsdown Camp was excavated 1927-9, by H. St. George Gray. The defences consisted of a Pre-Flavian dry stone wall and 'v'-shaped outer ditch, with a Pre-Belgic-Belgic inner ditch. Roman occupation ceased about Mid - 2nd c. Two paved entrances were found, the original to SSE, and The Roman, to NE, where two post-holes of a gate were revealed. The inner ditch produced a quantitiy of Hod Hill type brooches (c. AD 40-50), hearths and finds of Lake Village type, including two currency bars and bone needles. The occupation site excavated in 1927-9, covers an area of approximately half an acre. The enclosing wall is concealed in a low bank. The surrounding ditch survives only on the north and west but its position is indicated by a darker growth of grass for its full extent. Banks ouside the enclosure suggest associated fields, and very parched grass on top of the bank, and a few exposed stones, indicate walling beneath the surface. Resurveyed at 1:2500. All the finds from the 1927-29 excavations are in Taunton Museum.

Bronze Age Quoit, Williton

Grid reference ST01403740

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Langridge Wood Cist is situated alongside the Coleridge Way just to the northwest of Treborough Lodge Farm, on Exmoor. One of two remaining Bronze Age Cists found on Exmoor, five others having been all but destroyed. The cist is lined with slate slabs, partially covered by a 1.5 metre square-shaped capstone. The site was excavated in the early nineteenth century uncovering a skeleton.

Bronze Age Quoit, Williton

Grid reference ST01403740

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This Bronze Age cist is one of only seven to have been documented on Exmoor, only two of which survive. It is lined with slate slabs, and a large 1.5 metre square capstone still partially covers its top. The mound that would have surrounded it, was dug into in 1820 for road stone. When the cist was disturbed a skeleton was found inside and this was reinterred in the churchyard at nearby Treborough.

Iron Age Hill Fort, Bristol

Grid reference ST600660

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Maes Knoll is an Iron Age hillfort situated about two miles north of the Stanton Drew Stone Circles. The hillfort is thought to have been constructed in about 250BC. It has a triangular sort of shape with dimensions of 120 metres by 26 metres. It stands 14 metres high and encloses an area of about 8 hectares (20 acres), defended by ramparts. The hill fort stands on a hill 197 metres high and would have easily controlled the surrounding land below.

Iron Age Hill Fort, Shepton Mallet

Grid reference ST61004716

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Maesbury Castle is an Iron Age hill fort within the parish of Croscombe on the Mendip Hills, just north of Shepton Mallet. It has been designated as Scheduled Ancient Monument.

The name is derived from maes, meaning field or plain in Brythonic Welsh, and burh, meaning fort in Old English. There is also a record of the name Merksburi in 705 AD, meaning boundary fort. The area was a boundary between the Romano-British Celts and West Saxons during the period 577-652 AD, when the nearby Wansdyke fortification comprised part of the border.

The enclosure has an area of 2.5 hectares (6.2 acres), and lies at a height of 292 m (950 ft), with spectacular views in many directions. This includes the Somerset Levels to Glastonbury Tor and Brent Knoll which are the closest and probably the most easily identifiable landmarks from the site. The fort has a single rampart up to 6 m high, with an outer ditch (univallate). Entrances are to the south-east and north-east (with possible outworks). The Fort and surrounding grounds are now owned by the Stevens' Family who have been farming in Somerset for over 60 years.

Iron Age Settlement, Glastonbury

Grid reference ST44394222

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Meare Lake Village is the site of an Iron Age settlement on the Somerset Levels at Meare, Somerset. It is a Scheduled Ancient Monument.

In prehistoric times there were two villages situated within the now-drained Meare Pool, occupied at different times between 300 BC and 100 AD, similar to the nearby Glastonbury Lake Village.

Investigation of the Meare Pool indicates that it was formed by the encroachment of raised peat bogs around it, particularly during the Subatlantic climatic period (1st millennium BC), and core sampling demonstrates that it is filled with at least 2 metres (6.6 ft) of detritus mud. The pool at that time was at least 2 miles (3.2 km) long by 1 mile (1.6 km) wide.

The villages were built on a morass on an artificial foundation of timber filled with brushwood, bracken, rubble and clay. The two villages, east and west, within Meare Pool appear to originate from a collection of structures erected on the surface of the dried peat, such as tents, windbreaks and animal folds.

There were 50 to 60 hut sites in each of the villages. Clay was later spread over the peat, providing raised stands for occupation, industry and movement, and in some areas thicker clay spreads accommodated hearths built of clay or stone. More recent studies have shown that the villages were formed by laying dried clay over the Sphagnum Moss of the bog.

Little has been found of walls or roofing material, which has led to speculation that the huts were in fact tent-like structures, which may have only been occupied on a seasonal basis.

The lake villages in the area were connected by tracks such as the Sweet Track through the peat bog, and include the Honeygore, Abbotts Way, Bells, Bakers, Westhay, and Nidons trackways. The purpose of these structures was to enable easier travel between the settlements.

The Meare villages were discovered in 1895 but excavation did not start until 1908, with much of the early work being carried out by Arthur Bulleid and Harold Gray. In the 1970s the Somerset Levels Project undertook further excavations of the western area and followed this up with exploration of the eastern area in the 1980s. A ground-penetrating radar survey was undertaken in 1998 by the Centre for Wetland Archaeology at the University of Hull when coring was also undertaken by Exeter University.

Archaeologists uncovered several hearths in the buried ruins of one of the houses. They also found several lias stones lying around the fire, including one vertical stone which may have been a backrest. The archaeologists also found several artefacts, including cut pieces of red deer antler, pieces of iron, the rim of a bronze bowl, a spiral finger ring made from bronze, and a decorated amber bead.

Bone and antler weaving combs have been found in large numbers suggesting that braid production may have been important. The site was used during the Iron Age for glass working specialising particularly in bead production, some of which are now in the National Museum of Wales.

Iron Age Hill Fort, Dulverton

Grid reference SS8834129611

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Mounsey Castle is an Iron Age irregular triangular earthwork of 1.75 hectares (4.3 acres) north west of Dulverton. It is a Scheduled Ancient Monument (No 35638). It is surrounded by the remains of coursed stone walling, with an entrance to the west. It overlooks the River Barle.

There are two entrances to the site, one to the north east and the other to the south west, both of which appear to be original. The defences to the north are provided by an outwork located roughly 100 metres from the hillfort. It comprises a steep scarp with a shallow ditch to the rear and a level berm to the front, with a scarped bank below. The remains of a small stone building lie within the hiilfort and have been identified as a charcoal burner's hut.

Bronze Age Hill Fort, Taunton

Grid reference ST1928826378

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Norton Camp is a Bronze Age hill fort at Norton Fitzwarren near Taunton.

Excavations in 1908 and 1968-71 have shown evidence for both earlier and later activity. A small collection of flints indicates some activity in the Mesolithic and in the Early Neolithic. Flints had been reported prior to the 1908 excavations, including a flaked axehead. Potsherds of Late Neolithic/Early Bronze Age date have also been found. The earliest phase of enclosure appears to belong to the Early or Middle Bronze Age, comprising a bank and inner ditch. Subsequently the earthworks were supplemented by features including a possible palisade. A hoard of Middle Bronze Age metalwork including 8 bracelets, two palstaves and a socketed axe was found during the 1970 excavations though sadly its precise context was not recorded. A pit at the NE entrance contained clay mould debris derived from the casting of a Late Bronze Age sword. The hillfort, which encloses circa 13 acres, saw at least 3 phases of earthwork construction beginning in the early 1st millennium (Late Bronze Age/Early Iron Age).

Iron Age features excavated include gullies possibly associated with round houses, plus pits and post holes.

Roman activity on the hilltop appears to have belonged mainly to the 3rd and 4th centuries AD and is mainly represented by pottery, although a possible kiln flue was noted. No later activity was recorded from the (admittedly small-scale) excavations.

Iron Age Hill Fort, Dulverton

Grid reference SS9076728323

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Oldberry Castle (sometimes called Oldbury Castle) is an Iron Age hill fort north west of Dulverton. It lies approximately 0.5 miles (0.80 km) north-west from Dulverton, close to the Devon border. It has been designated as a Scheduled Ancient Monument.

The site overlooks the town and the ancient crossing point of the River Barle. It is an irregular oval shape measuring 720 feet (220 m) by 300 feet (91 m). It is defended by a bank measuring 10 feet (3.0 m) wide and 6 feet (1.8 m) high, and a 18 feet (5.5 m) wide ditch.

Iron Age Hill Fort, Bridgwater

Grid reference ST18433621

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Plainsfield Camp (or Park Plantation) is a possible Iron Age earthwork on the Quantock Hills near Aisholt in Somerset.

The so-called hill fort has several features that make it more likely to be an animal enclosure, than a defended settlement: single rampart with ditch, simple opening for an entrance situated on the slope of a hill. The hill rises over 50 m above the ring, the area is only 0.9 hectares (2.2 acres). The case for an enclosure is less clear cut than for Trendle Ring, since Plainsfield is on a spur and does have steep slopes on two sides, making it like a promontory fort, similar to nearby Ruborough.

It is a Scheduled Ancient Monument. The rampart is comprised of stone and earth, 7-10m in width, and stands to a maximum of 3m on the down slope side. There are 3 breaches in the circuit, 2 on the north-eastern side and one in the southern corner. The break in the northern corner appears to be contemporary and is possibly the original entrance. The breach at the centre of the south-eastern side has previously been recorded as the original entrance but close examination would suggest that it is possibly later in date.

Neolithic Stone Circle, Porlock

Grid reference SS84514467

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Porlock Stone Circle lies near Porlock on Exmoor. It is situated behind a hedge to the west of the minor road from the A39 to Exford, not far south from the Whit Stones. The circle is in a reasonable state with its remaining 20 stones very spread out. The stones are between 15cm and 0.8 metres tall. A fallen stone to the east side is 1.8 metres long.

Neolithic Henge, Priddy

Grid reference ST539525

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A linear arrangement of four circular earthwork enclosures, arranged roughly south-south-west to north-north-east and usually numbered one to four in the same direction. The southernmost is immediately east of Harptree Lodge, and the first three are quite closely spaced. The northernmost, which is separated from the other three by a gap of some 350 metres, is immediately northeast of Bandpitt Farm. Each enclosure has been recorded separately (ST 55 SW 124-7), and those records should be consulted for more detail. The gap separating Priddy 4 from the remainder seems genuine - there is no "missing" enclosure. This gap is bisected by the course of the Roman road (RR 45b) which runs northwest-southeast between Charterhouse and Old Sarum. Excavations between 1956 and 1959 focused on Priddy 1, although some test borings were undertaken in Priddy 4. No dating evidence was found, but the excavators assumed all four circles to be henge monuments. The enclosures are currently scheduled as probable Neolithic ritual or ceremonial monuments similar to the henge class. Apart from the lack of finds, the henge interpretation is rendered problematical by the presence of external rather than internal ditches. The obvious comparison is with Stonehenge phase 1, although that monument presents morphological and chronological difficulties in terms of interpretation as a henge. Priddy 4 contains several features interpreted as Bronze Age bowl barrows (ST 55 SW 6), though none have been excavated. Numerous features clustered around the circles and beyond have been interpreted in the past as old mine or quarry workings. More recent analysis suggests that although there is some evidence for mining, many of the features around and within the circles are natural sinkholes.

Information taken from English Heritage's PastScape Record

Bronze Age Barrow Cemetery, Priddy

Grid reference ST538516

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Priddy Nine Barrows are a group of Bronze Age barrows located to the southeast of the village of Priddy, near Cheddar in Somerset. In 1977 a Mesolithic hut site was excavated at Priddy. Nearby are the Priddy Circles a Stone circle or Henge monument, which appears to be contemporary with Stonehenge, i.e. Neolithic circa 2180 BC. The North Hill location of two round barrow cemeteries, Ashen Hill and Priddy Nine-Barrows which are neighbours of the Circles, would seem to imply that the area to the north-east of Priddy held ritual significance into the Bronze Age. South of the village at Deer Leap is a Bronze age burial mound and the remains of a medieval settlement of Ramspit. Drove Cottage Henge is a Neolithic ceremonial location to the east of the village.

Iron Age Hill Fort, Minehead

Grid reference SS86283757

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Road Castle is an Iron Age bank and ditch in West Somerset. The hill fort is situated approximately 2 miles (3.2 km) west from the village of Winsford. The ditch is almost square in plan with rounded corners and covers an area of approximately 0.7 acres (0.28 ha).

Iron Age Hill Fort, Frome

Grid reference ST7966044073

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Roddenbury Hillfort is a univallate Iron Age hillfort in the parish of Selwood, Somerset. It is a Scheduled Ancient Monument and on the Heritage at Risk register. It is close to the later Hales Castle. The site covers 0.84 hectares (2.1 acres). It some places the protective bank has been destroyed in others it remains up to 1.6 metres (5.2 ft) high and has a 1.8 metres (5.9 ft) ditch below it.

Iron Age Hill Fort, Minehead

Grid reference SS9981839281

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Rodhuish Common is a univallate Iron Age hill fort in West Somerset. There is a small oval enclosure which is thought to be of Iron Age date.

It lies on steep south-east facing slopes near the bottom of Rodhuish Common. It measures 31.7m north-south by 28.3m west-east. It is defined by a stony bank averaging 0.6 m high on all sides except the west: here it is marked by a 1.7 m high cut into the natural slopes. The enclosure is very overgrown with low scrub, thorn and silver birch. As a result it is not possible to discern subtleties in the earthworks or to identify evidence for internal settlement.

Iron Age Hill Fort, Taunton

Grid reference ST2263133617

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Ruborough Camp is an Iron Age hill fort on the Quantock Hills near Broomfield in Somerset. The name comes from Rugan beorh or Ruwan-beorge meaning Rough Hill. It is a Scheduled Ancient Monument

It is a triangular-shaped promontory fort, comprising double bank with medial ditch. The entrance was apparently in the west where there is, also, an outlying bank and ditch. There was a strong legend of buried treasure here, the Camp being known locally as 'The Money Field'.

Bronze Age Hill Fort, Wincanton

Grid reference ST64052365

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Sigwells Camp overlooks Cadbury Castle. It was the target of research by the South Cadbury Environs Project, which produced significant Early Bronze Age and Middle and Late Iron Age archaeology. Of national importance was the identification of the earliest known metalworking building in Britain, dated to Middle Bronze Age (12th century BC).

Bronze Age Hill Fort, Shepton Mallet

Grid reference ST6642140714

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Small Down Camp is a multivallate hill fort enclosing 2 hectares (4.9 acres). There is also a group of around 14 barrows within the walls of the camp. Multiple walls and a ditch defend the site, but the walls are crumbling and the ditch has been filled up.

Iron Age Hill Fort, Bathampton

Grid reference ST768679

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Little Solsbury Hill (more commonly known as Solsbury Hill) is a small flat-topped hill and the site of an Iron Age hill fort. It is located above the village of Batheaston in Somerset, England. The hill rises to 625 feet (191 metres) above the River Avon which is just over 1 mile to the south. It is within the Cotswolds Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. It gives impressive views of the city of Bath and the surrounding area. The hill was immortalized in 1977 by Peter Gabriel in his song 'Solsbury Hill'. It is sometimes misspelled as Salisbury, or Solisbury, perhaps because of confusion with Salisbury Plain, in Wiltshire. The name Solsbury may be derived from the Celtic god Sulis, a deity worshipped at the thermal spring in nearby Bath.

Iron Age Hill Fort, Sparkford

Grid reference ST628251

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South Cadbury Castle is known to have been constructed and occupied in the Early Neolithic. Excavations give a date prior to 3000 BC. The area was then occupied in the Bronze Age and also used, unfortified, in the Early Iron Age. Sometime between 500 and 200 BC the hill top was fortified. The impressive defensive ramparts were constructed. The defended area is about 8 hectares and there is also speculation that an Iron Age temple, a Smithy and some houses also stood here. There are also artifacts found that clearly demonstrate that South Cadbury along with some of its neighbours were attacked by the Romans. Items uncovered include Roman military equipment and also the foundations of a Roman military building within the fort itself.

Neolithic Hill Fort, Bristol

Grid reference ST601634

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Standing Stones in Somerset located 200 metres north of Stanton Drew Great Circle in the garden of 'The Druid's Arms' pub.

Neolithic Stone Circle, Bristol

Grid reference ST601632

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Stanton Drew lies to the east of Chew Magna to the south of Bristol. There are two large circles here. They are so large they take a bit of getting your head around. The Great Circle, 113 metres in diameter is the second largest Stone Circle in Britain after Avebury. It dwarfs its neighbour, the North-East Circle at only 30 metres diameter. A third circle of eleven stones nearby on private land. Stanton Drew lies about 5 miles south of Bristol, off the B3130.

Iron Age Hill Fort, Keynsham

Grid reference ST672637

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Stantonbury Camp is an Iron Age hillfort near Stanton Prior within the parish of Marksbury. It is a Scheduled Ancient Monument.

The hillfort, which is at the top of an isolated outcrop of Oolitic Limestone, close to the A39 road is on the route of the Wansdyke.

Wansdyke (from Woden's Dyke) is an early medieval or possibly defining an Roman boundary with a series of defensive linear earthworks in the West Country of England, consisting of a ditch and a running embankment from the ditch spoil, with the ditching facing north.

Its construction is attributed to the pagan Saxons, probably in the late sixth century. It runs at least from Maes Knoll in Somerset, a hillfort at the east end of Dundry Hill south of Bristol, to the Savernake Forest near Marlborough in Wiltshire.

Several iron agricultural implements including blades of sickles or pruning hooks and the iron tip from an ard, which are now in the collection of the British Museum.

The site is on the English Heritage Heritage at Risk Register as being in danger of deterioration because of extensive animal burrowing.

Iron Age Hill Fort, Bristol

Grid reference ST5571273354

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Stokeleigh Camp is an Iron Age promontory hillfort in Leigh Woods, North Somerset near Bristol. It is a Scheduled Ancient Monument.

Stokeleigh Camp is one of three Iron Age fortifications overlooking the Avon Gorge, the others being Burwalls south of the Nightingale Valley, of which almost no trace remains, and the other being Clifton Camp on the opposite side of the gorge, on Clifton Down near the Observatory. A prehistoric road ran from Stokeleigh Camp to Cadbury Camp near Tickenham.

Stokeleigh Camp is situated on a promontory and occupies around 7.5 acres (3.0 ha). It was protected by the Avon Gorge to the north and east, by the steeply sloping Nightingale Valley on the south and by three ramparts which increase in size as they move inwards towards the central plateau, with the innermost vallum (a ditch and rampart with a palisade) being over 30 feet (9.1 m) high. It shows evidence of dry walling along most of its length, although this may not be an original feature.

Stokeleigh Camp is thought to have been occupied from the late pre-Roman Iron Age, when it was in the area controlled by the Dobunni. Archaeological investigations suggest during the 1st century Belgae tribes may have been present with some of the pottery showing the influence of the Durotriges. There may have been a break in occupation before reuse in the middle to late 2nd century.

In addition to the pottery recovered a possible coin of Gallienus dating from his reign between 253 and 268 has been recovered. An iron-involuted brooch of the La T�ne II type has also been found.

It is unclear whether the occupation of Stokeleigh Camp in the 3rd century was for a formal garrison or whether it was just used by "squatters" or as a place of refuge in times of crisis. It has been suggested that Stokeleigh was connected with the Wansdyke, a series of defensive linear earthworks, consisting of a ditch and an embankment running at least from Maes Knoll in Somerset, to the Savernake Forest near Marlborough in Wiltshire, however there is little evidence for this. It is also possible that the site was occupied in the Middle Ages.

Neolithic Long Barrow, Bath

Grid reference ST735572

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Stoney Littleton Long Barrow otherwise known as the Bath Tumulus and the Wellow Tumulus is a Neolithic Chambered Cairn. It is a tremendous ancient monument situated to the east of the village of Peasedown St. John, to the south of Bath. The barrow has dimensions of about 30 metres by 15 metres and stands just under 3 metres tall. The entrance resembles a set of horns and there is an ammonite shape on one of the door jambs. The entrance leads to a gallery 16m long by 1 metre high. English Heritage describes the site thus: 'The long mound is oriented north west - south east, is trapezoidal in plan and measures about 30 metres long, 12.5 metres wide (at its widest point) and 2 metres in height, though it is believed to have once been much higher. The barrow mound is composed of small stones and is surrounded by a restored dry stone wall. At the south eastern end is a recessed forecourt flanked by dry stone walling which extends to the entrance. The entrance comprises of a lintel supported by two jambs and leads to the internal chamber. The western door jamb includes an ammonite cast one foot or 0.3 metres in diameter. The internal chamber includes a transepted gallery grave with three pairs of side chambers and an end chamber. The gallery extends for about 13 metres and varies in height from 1.2 metres to 1.8 metres. The mound is flanked on each side by a now infilled quarry ditch about 3 metres wide from which material was taken to construct the barrow. In 1816, an excavation by John Skinner uncovered human bones within the chamber some of which are held at the City Museum, Bristol'. Be sure to bring a torch to examine the three pairs of side chambers and the end chamber. truly, well worth a visit.

Neolithic Trackway, Glastonbury

Grid reference ST424408

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Ancient Trackway in Somerset. The Sweet Track is a supreme, if not so obvious example of Neolithic engineering, 6000 years old. An elevated footpath that ran for almost 2km across the Somerset levels swamps. Extensive tree ring studies have shown that ash, oak and lime trees were systematically cut, pre-fabricated and transported to the site, where they were built into a narrow footpath supported on crossed poles, driven into heavy poles underwater and pegged together. Finally the oak walking platform was laid on top of the V-shaped notch. All this indicates a high degree of organisation and forward planning. Some repairs were carried out, but it is clear that the Sweet Track was only in use for around ten years, probably due to the rising water level engulfing it. This waterlogging is what enabled the track to survive until it was accidentally discovered by a peat worker (named Ray Sweet) in 1970. A section of the still-buried track within the Shapwick Heath nature reserve is protected against drying out by a water distribution system. Another trackway is the Abbot's Way, from only 4000 years ago that can also be road-tested at the excellent Peat Moors Visitor Centre. Access: Sections of the Sweet Track are on display in the British Museum, London. The original Sweet Track passed through what is now Shapwick Heath National Nature Reserve and there are various signposted walks and information boards within the reserve.

Iron Age Hill Fort, Porlock

Grid reference SS8883642609

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Sweetworthy is an Iron Age hill fort situated at Luccombe, south of Porlock in West Somerset. It lies on the north-facing slope of Dunkery Hill. It has a single rampart and external ditch, enclosing 0.25 hectares (0.62 acre).

The rampart is still visible and the ditch on the east side is used as a trackway. There was a defended settlement above the main site. It is also the site of a deserted medieval settlement.

Iron Age Hill Fort, Nailsea

Grid reference ST47796708

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A small and little known Iron Age hillfort situated between the villages of Brockley and Backwell near Nailsea in Northeast Somerset.

It is marked on the 1960s OS Pathfinder Map as a Settlement but it has strong defences with ramparts banks and ditches.

Iron Age Hill Fort, Frome

Grid reference ST7421148916

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Tedbury Camp is a multivallate Iron Age promontory hill fort defended by two parallel banks near Great Elm in eastern Somerset. The inner bank is 4 feet (1.2 m) to 6 feet (1.8 m) wide and stands 10 feet (3.0 m) to 15 feet (4.6 m) high in places. There may have been a third bank.

The hill fort covers an area of approximately 60 acres (24 ha) between the Mells River and Fordbury Water. It is also a site of Roman occupation between 337 and 366 which left behind a hoard of Constantine Junior coins which were found in 1691. Further excavations unearthed a Quern-stone between 1939 and 1945.

Neolithic Quoit, Bristol

Grid reference ST502644

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Situated close to Bristol International Airport, this portal dolmen or quoit is a prehistoric burial chamber consisting of three fallen stones and a former covering capstone. To the northeast of the village of Redhill it is marked on OS maps as Burial Chamber. About a mile and a half away to the southeast lies Butcombe Round Barrow.

Iron Age Earthwork, Williton

Grid reference ST1162439510

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Trendle Ring, otherwise known as Trundle Ring, is an Iron Age earthwork on the Quantock Hills near Bicknoller. It is a Scheduled Ancient Monument.

The word trendle means circle, so it is a tautological place name. The site, which covers 2 acres (0.8 ha.) is surrounded by a single rampart with a ditch and has a simple opening for an entrance. It is situated on the slope of a hill which rises 130 m above the ring.

Iron Age Hill Fort, Radstock

Grid reference ST6822659243

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Tunley Camp is a univallate Iron Age hill fort just under a mile northeast of Camerton near Radstock in Somerset. Plough damage means that is little to see nowadays.

Iron Age Hill Fort, Frome

Grid reference ST735489

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A univallate hillfort with earthwork remains situated just to the east of Mells near Frome in the Mendip district of Somerset. The bank in places is up to 16 feet (4.9 m) high. Other parts have been almost completely destroyed.

Iron Age Hill Fort, Clevedon

Grid reference ST3896370720

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Wain's Hill is an univallate Iron Age hill fort situated a mile southwest of Clevedon in North Somerset. The hillfort is defined by a steep, natural slope from the south and north with two ramparts to the east.

Iron Age Enclosure, Clevedon

Grid reference ST4275973789

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A banjo enclosure believed to date from the late Iron Age near Walton in Gordano.

Bronze Age Barrow Cemetery, Dulverton

Grid reference SS876343

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Wambarrows Round Barrows are situated on top of Winsford Hill, lying between Withypool and Tarr Steps. The three large barrows lie in a line from east to west. The westernmost barrow, is the largest with a diameter of just under 30 metres. The two other barrows, both with diameters of 20 metres, lie nearer to the summit and are easier to make out. Unfortunately their centres have been robbed out. The barrows stand roughly 2.5 metres high. Two other poorly defined barrows lie nearby.

Hill, Glastonbury

Grid reference ST492382

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While visiting Glastonbury, Wearyall Hill is a good vantage point from which to get an overview of the Isle of Avalon and all of Glastonbury's holy hills. This is where the guided tours around Glastonbury tend to start.

Iron Age Hill Fort, Wells

Grid reference ST4927951326

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Westbury Camp is a univallate Iron Age hill fort in the Sedgemoor district of Somerset. The hill fort is situated about a mile northeast of Draycott village. The camp lies largely on a hill slope. The north east defences have largely been destroyed by quarrying over the years. The narrow top of the hill bank suggests that it may have been topped by a dry stone wall. Along part of the east side of the camp there are traces of a berm between the bank and the outer ditch and at the western angle shallow quarry pits occur internally and externally set back from the 'rampart'.

Neolithic Hill, Glastonbury

Grid reference ST50453950

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Otherwise known as St Edmund's Hill, this is one of the many sites named Windmill Hill in the UK. The hill, thought to be heavily altered by man, lies near Glastonbury at Grid Reference ST50453950. Now largely built upon, it is still an excellent place to watch the sun rise at winter solstice, giving an alternative view of solar alignments.

Neolithic Stone Circle, Dulverton

Grid reference SS83833432

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Withypool Stone Circle lies near the summit of Withypool Hill on Exmoor. The stones are not all that striking in height, the tallest standing less than 0.5 metres tall. About 40 stones remain, located about a metre apart in a circle of 40 metres diameter. This implies that the original circle had close to 100 stones.

Iron Age Hill Fort, Weston super Mare

Grid reference ST315625

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Worlebury Camp is a hillfort near Weston super Mare in Somerset. It dates from the Iron Age although other finds suggest the overall site dates from the Bronze Age.

Iron Age Settlement, Bristol

Grid reference ST52057193

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Wraxall Camp is an Iron Age earthwork in Northeast Somerset. It lies about 100m north of Failand village it is about 40metres in diameter and has banks up to one metre high by 8 metres wide. There is no trace of a defensive ditch.