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HER:  Northumberland 3168 (None)
NMR:  NU 01 NE 36 (1378735)
SM:  None
NGR:  NU 0572 1954
X:  405722  Y:  619540  (OSGB36)
Lying on a low knoll at 81m OD to the N of Percy's Cross Fox Covert, the cropmarks of an almost circular ditch enclosing 0.68ha, probably a former univallate hillfort. The feature comprises an outer ditch 2.5m wide which encircles the base of a low knoll. Internally two 0.5m wide palisades trenches lying 8m apart and measuring 44m and 68m in diameter run concentrically to the main enclosure ditch (Deegan, 2003; Gates and Deegan 2009, 144) which are probably earlier. Both have possible entrances in the W and E. The rounded terminal on the E side of the main enclosure possibly forms one side of an entrance. The opposing terminal ditch is obscured by different land use not conducive to cropmark formation. The enclosure is not recorded on historic OS mapping and its origins are uncertain. The site was mapped as part of the Till-Tweed ALSF/NMP Project.
Citizen Science:  ✗
Reliability of Data:  Unconfirmed
Reliability of Interpretation:  Confirmed
X:  -212736  Y:  7453563  (EPSG: 3857)
Longitude:  -1.9110372764376145  Latitude:  55.46969237812988  (EPSG:4326)
Country:  England; None
Current County or Unitary Authority:  Northumberland
Historic County:  Northumberland
Current Parish/Community/Council/Townland:  Bewick; Hedgeley
None
Extant   | ✗ |
Cropmark   | ✓ |
Likely Destroyed   | ✗ |
None
Woodland   | ✓ |
Commercial Forestry Plantation   | ✗ |
Parkland   | ✗ |
Pasture (Grazing)   | ✗ |
Arable   | ✓ |
Scrub/Bracken   | ✗ |
Bare Outcrop   | ✗ |
Heather/Moorland   | ✗ |
Heath   | ✗ |
Built-up   | ✗ |
Coastal Grassland   | ✗ |
Other   | ✗ |
A possible contour fort encircling a low knoll a few metres above the Beamish floodplain at 81m OD
Contour Fort   | ✓ |
Partial Contour Fort   | ✗ |
Promontory Fort   | ✗ |
Hillslope Fort   | ✗ |
Level Terrain Fort   | ✗ |
Marsh Fort   | ✗ |
Multiple Enclosure Fort   | ✗ |
Hilltop   | ✗ |
Coastal Promontory   | ✗ |
Inland Promontory   | ✗ |
Valley Bottom   | ✗ |
Knoll/Hillock/Outcrop   | ✗ |
Ridge   | ✗ |
Cliff/Plateau-edge/Scarp   | ✗ |
Hillslope   | ✗ |
Lowland   | ✓ |
Spur   | ✗ |
Dominant Topographic Feature:  Low knoll
North   | ✗ |
Northeast   | ✗ |
East   | ✗ |
Southeast   | ✗ |
South   | ✗ |
Southwest   | ✗ |
West   | ✗ |
Northwest   | ✗ |
Level   | ✓ |
Altitude:  81.0m
Parish boundary between Bewick and Hedgeley runs through or to the N of the enclosure
Boundary Type:  Parish/Townland
The site is undated but it is presumed the ditched enclosure evolved from the earlier palisaded enclosure
Reliability:  D - None
Pre 1200BC   | ✗ |
1200BC - 800BC   | ✗ |
800BC - 400BC   | ✗ |
400BC - AD50   | ✗ |
AD50 - AD400   | ✗ |
AD400 - AD 800   | ✗ |
Post AD800   | ✗ |
Unknown   | ✓ |
Pre Hillfort:   | Palisade |
Post Hillfort:   | None |
Mapped in 2003 from aerial photographs as part of the Till-Tweed ALSF/NMP Project
Other (2003):   | None |
No internal features are recorded
Bordered by the Randy Burn in the N and E
None   | ✓ |
Spring   | ✗ |
Stream   | ✗ |
Pool   | ✗ |
Flush   | ✗ |
Well   | ✗ |
Other   | ✗ |
None
No Known Features   | ✓ |
Round Stone Structures   | ✗ |
Rectangular Stone Structures   | ✗ |
Curvilinear Platforms   | ✗ |
Other Roundhouse Evidence   | ✗ |
Pits   | ✗ |
Quarry Hollows   | ✗ |
Other   | ✗ |
None
No Known Excavation   | ✓ |
Pits   | ✗ |
Postholes   | ✗ |
Roundhouses   | ✗ |
Rectangular Structures   | ✗ |
Roads/Tracks   | ✗ |
Quarry Hollows   | ✗ |
Other   | ✗ |
Nothing Found   | ✗ |
None
No Known Geophysics   | ✓ |
Pits   | ✗ |
Roundhouses   | ✗ |
Rectangular Structures   | ✗ |
Roads/Tracks   | ✗ |
Quarry Hollows   | ✗ |
Other   | ✗ |
Nothing Found   | ✗ |
None
No Known Finds   | ✓ |
Pottery   | ✗ |
Metal   | ✗ |
Metalworking   | ✗ |
Human Bones   | ✗ |
Animal Bones   | ✗ |
Lithics   | ✗ |
Environmental   | ✗ |
Other   | ✗ |
None
APs Not Checked   | ✗ |
None   | ✓ |
Roundhouses   | ✗ |
Rectangular Structures   | ✗ |
Pits   | ✗ |
Postholes   | ✗ |
Roads/Tracks   | ✗ |
Other   | ✗ |
The pallisades have possible entrances in the W and E. The rounded terminal on the E side of the main enclosure possibly forms one side of an entrance. The opposing terminal ditch is obscured by different landuse not conducive to cropmark formation
5:   | None |
2:   | None |
Guard Chambers:  ✗
Chevaux de Frise:  ✗
1. Simple Gap (East):   | Inner palisade |
2. Simple Gap (East):   | Outer palisade |
3. Simple Gap (West):   | Inner palisade |
4. Simple Gap (West):   | Outer palisade |
5. Simple Gap (East):   | Rounded terminal on E side of main enclosure ditch |
Almost circular ditch enclosing 0.68ha Comprises an outer ditch 2.5m wide which circles around the base of the hill. Internally two 0.5m wide palisade trenches lying 8m apart and measuring 44m and 68m in diameter run concentrically to the ditch.
Area 1:   | 0.68ha. |
Total:   | 0.68ha. |
Total Footprint Area:  Noneha.
None
✓   | Earlier palisaded enclosure |
✓   | None |
NE Quadrant:   | 1 |
SE Quadrant:   | 1 |
SW Quadrant:   | 1 |
NW Quadrant:   | 1 |
Total:   | 1 |
Partial Univallate   | ✗ |
Univallate   | ✓ |
Partial Bivallate   | ✗ |
Bivallate   | ✗ |
Partial Multivallate   | ✗ |
Multivallate   | ✗ |
Unknown   | ✗ |
Partial Univallate   | ✗ |
Univallate   | ✗ |
Partial Bivallate   | ✗ |
Bivallate   | ✗ |
Partial Multivallate   | ✗ |
Multivallate   | ✗ |
Two palisades
None   | ✗ |
Earthen Bank   | ✗ |
Stone Wall   | ✗ |
Rubble   | ✗ |
Wall-walk   | ✗ |
Evidence of Timber   | ✗ |
Vitrification   | ✗ |
Other Burning   | ✗ |
Palisade   | ✓ |
Counter Scarp Bank   | ✗ |
Berm   | ✗ |
Unfinished   | ✗ |
Other   | ✗ |
None
None   | ✗ |
Earthen Bank   | ✗ |
Stone Wall   | ✗ |
Murus Duplex   | ✗ |
Timber-framed   | ✗ |
Timber-laced   | ✗ |
Vitrification   | ✗ |
Other Burning   | ✗ |
Palisade   | ✗ |
Counter Scarp Bank   | ✗ |
Berm   | ✗ |
Unfinished   | ✗ |
No Known Excavation   | ✓ |
Other   | ✗ |
✗   | None |
✓   | None |
Number of Ditches:  1
✗   | None |
Deegan, A. 2003. Till-Tweed ALSF/NMP Project Northumberland Summary Report. Aerial Survey Report Series AER/6/2003. English Heritage
Gates, T and Deegan, A. 2009. Monuments in the Landscape in Passmore, D.G. and Waddington, C. (eds). Managing Archaeological Landscapes in Northumberland. Till-Tweed Studies, Vol 1. Oxbow, 125-171
Atlas of Hillforts:
Wikidata:
This work is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 and should be cited as:
Lock, Gary and Ralston, Ian. 2024. Atlas of Hillforts of Britain and Ireland. Available at: https://hillforts.arch.ox.ac.uk
Document Version 1.1