Ditsworthy Clam enclosures and hut circles

Historic England's scheduling record (list entry 1009573) describes an agglomerated enclosure on a spur above the south bank of the River Plym, south-west of Ditsworthy Clam. Such enclosures were plots of land, walled or banked, that served as stock pens or protected growing areas, and some were divided to hold huts for farmers and herdsmen. Many date to the Bronze Age, about 2500 to 500 BC, though earlier and later examples exist. It lies in the parish of Shaugh Prior, about 0.9 km east of Legis Tor and 2.7 km south-east of Sheepstor.

This one is five joined enclosures with hut circles and a later longhouse built in the middle. It covers about 2.7 hectares, bounded by banks of earth and stone up to 2 metres wide and 0.5 metres high. The Lee Moor China Clay Works Leat cuts through its north-west part and is not included in the scheduling. Inside are fourteen huts, 4 to 11 metres across, with walls up to 2.5 metres wide and 0.6 metres high. Their entrances vary from north-west to south-east. The agglomeration seems to have grown from the largest circular enclosure on the north-east side, with four smaller enclosures added to the south and west. The longhouse and its courts are 7 metres long and 4 metres wide, with walls 1 metre thick standing up to 1.5 metres high.

Sources: Historic England list entry 1009573, which cites the Devon County Sites and Monuments Register (SX56NE-053). The Historic England page carries a visitor's aerial photographs of the settlement; I have not used them.

• Period: Bronze Age
• Status: Scheduled monument (Historic England list entry 1009573)
• Grid reference: SX 5791 6579 (approximate, from the listing's coordinates)