Monument record MDR3776 - Defensive stonework or hillfort, Cratcliffe or Cratcliff Rocks, Harthill
Type and Period (1)
- HILLTOP ENCLOSURE (Late Prehistoric - 4000 BC? to 42 AD?)
Protected Status/Designation
- None recorded
Full Description
The summit of Cratcliffe Rocks has been made into a hill fort by a wall of great boulders which may be pre-Roman. (1)
A defensive stone bank, about three metres wide and 1.7 metres high, surveyed between SK 22756238 and SK 22796239 at 1/2,500. The enclosed area is outcrop, no surface evidence of occupation was noted, but the work appears to be prehistoric. (2)
Defensive wall filling natural gaps between large natural stones on a high exposed outcrop. Not a sign of interior construction, the interior being strewn with boulders. (3)
Cratcliff Rocks lie on Harthill Moor and are close to an undated ditched and banked enclosure and the hillfort of Castle Ring (SMR 6718). The fort's defences consist of a massive, 55m long boulder wall cutting off the higher part of the gritstone promontory. The wall is 2-3m wide and approximately 1m in height, with some of the orthostats even higher. The wall is revetted in places with coursed gritstone blocks on the inner and outter faces, together with with large orthostats or boulders set on edge. There are no signs of domestic features on the interior which could suggest house sites. (4)
Sources/Archives (4)
- <1> SDR221 Bibliographic reference: Heathcote, J. 1947. Birchover: Its Prehistoric and Druidical Remains. p33.
- <2> SDR6365 Personal Observation: F1 JB 10-SEP-66.
- <3> SDR10000 Index: North Derbyshire Archaeological Trust (NDAT). North Derbyshire Archaeological Trust Index. Un-numbered record.
- <4> SDR23613 Article in serial: Makepeace, G. 1999. 'Cratcliff Rocks- a forgotten hillfort on Harthill Moor, near Bakewell, Derbyshire', Derbyshire Archaeological Journal.
Map
Location
| Grid reference | Centred SK 2276 6237 (81m by 56m) (Centre) |
|---|---|
| Civil Parish | HARTHILL, DERBYSHIRE DALES, DERBYSHIRE |
Related Monuments/Buildings (0)
Related Events/Activities (1)
- EDR981
Please contact the HER for details.
External Links (0)
Record last edited
Aug 12 2015 11:01AM