Atlas of Hillforts of Britain and Ireland

EN0570 Pressen Hill, Northumberland

LiDAR 1m DTM Hillshade

LiDAR 1m DTM Hillshade

Satellite Imagery

Satellite Imagery

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HER:  Northumberland 700 (None)

NMR:  NT 83 NW 30 (1167)

SM:  None

NGR:  NT 8295 3607

X:  382950  Y:  636070  (OSGB36)

Summary

Lying approximately 890m to the NE of Howburn at 81m OD below the summit of Pressen Hill, the cropmarks of a multiple ditched enclosure, possibly a hillfort. The site is sub-oval in form with an internal area of 85m by 70m enclosing 0.48ha. Two closely spaced ditches lie on the N and W sides and up to four ditches on the S and E. The overall measurements are 157m by 106m covering an estimated area of 1.3ha. Staggered entrances lie on the NE and SW facing sides. The site is not recorded on OS mapping, but was recorded from aerial photographs as part of the Till-Tweed AP study area (Gates and Deegan 2009, 125-171).

Status

Citizen Science:  

Reliability of Data:  Unconfirmed

Reliability of Interpretation:  Confirmed

Location

X:  -252947  Y:  7482734  (EPSG: 3857)

Longitude:  -2.272264597129165  Latitude:  55.61795346385752  (EPSG:4326)

Country:  England

Current County or Unitary Authority:  Northumberland

Historic County:  Northumberland

Current Parish/Community/Council/Townland:  Kirknewton

Monument Condition

None

Condition:
Extant  
Cropmark  
Likely Destroyed  

Land Use

None

Current Use:
Woodland  
Commercial Forestry Plantation  
Parkland  
Pasture (Grazing)  
Arable  
Scrub/Bracken  
Bare Outcrop  
Heather/Moorland  
Heath  
Built-up  
Coastal Grassland  
Other  

Landscape

Hillfort Type

A possible former hillslope fort lying at approximately 81m OD. It lies on sloping ground below the summit of Pressen Hill.

Type:
Contour Fort  
Partial Contour Fort  
Promontory Fort  
Hillslope Fort  
Level Terrain Fort  
Marsh Fort  
Multiple Enclosure Fort  

Topographic Position

Position:
Hilltop  
Coastal Promontory  
Inland Promontory  
Valley Bottom  
Knoll/Hillock/Outcrop  
Ridge  
Cliff/Plateau-edge/Scarp  
Hillslope  
Lowland  
Spur  

Dominant Topographic Feature:  Summit of Pressen Hill

Aspect:
North  
Northeast  
East  
Southeast  
South  
Southwest  
West  
Northwest  
Level  

Altitude:  81.0m

Boundary

N/A


Dating Evidence

Undated

Reliability:  D - None

Principal Activity:
Pre 1200BC  
1200BC - 800BC  
800BC - 400BC  
400BC - AD50  
AD50 - AD400  
AD400 - AD 800  
Post AD800  
Unknown  

Other Activity:
Pre Hillfort:   None
Post Hillfort:   None

Evidence:No related records

Investigation History

Recorded from aerial photographs as part of the Till-Tweed AP study area

Investigations:
Other (2003):   Aerial photographic mapping

Interior Features

No internal features are recorded

Water Source

None

Source:
None  
Spring  
Stream  
Pool  
Flush  
Well  
Other  

Surface

None

Interior Features (Surface):
No Known Features  
Round Stone Structures  
Rectangular Stone Structures  
Curvilinear Platforms  
Other Roundhouse Evidence  
Pits  
Quarry Hollows  
Other  

Excavation

None

Interior Features (Excavation):
No Known Excavation  
Pits  
Postholes  
Roundhouses  
Rectangular Structures  
Roads/Tracks  
Quarry Hollows  
Other  
Nothing Found  

Geophysics

None

Interior Features (Geophysics):
No Known Geophysics  
Pits  
Roundhouses  
Rectangular Structures  
Roads/Tracks  
Quarry Hollows  
Other  
Nothing Found  

Finds

None

Interior (Finds):
No Known Finds  
Pottery  
Metal  
Metalworking  
Human Bones  
Animal Bones  
Lithics  
Environmental  
Other  

Aerial

None

Interior Features (Aerial):
APs Not Checked  
None  
Roundhouses  
Rectangular Structures  
Pits  
Postholes  
Roads/Tracks  
Other  

Entrances

Described as staggered entrances in the NE and SW sides (Gates and Deegan 2009, 358)

Total Number of Breaks Through Ramparts:  
2:   None

Number of Possible Original Entrances:  
2:   None

Guard Chambers:  

Chevaux de Frise:  

Entrances:
1. Oblique (North east):   None
2. Oblique (South west):   None

Enclosing Works

Cropmarks of a multiple ditched enclosure. Sub-oval in form with an internal area of 85m by 70m enclosing 0.48ha. Two closely spaced ditches lie on the N and W sides and up to four ditches on the S and E. The overall measurements are 157m by 106m covering an estimated area of 1.3ha.

Enclosed Area:
Area 1:   0.48ha.
Total:   0.48ha.

Total Footprint Area:  1.3ha.

Ramparts

None

Multi-period Enclosure System:
✗   None

Ramparts Form a Continuous Circuit:
✓   None

Number of Ramparts:  
NE Quadrant:   2
SE Quadrant:   4
SW Quadrant:   4
NW Quadrant:   2
Total:   4

Morphology

Current Morphology:
Partial Univallate  
Univallate  
Partial Bivallate  
Bivallate  
Partial Multivallate  
Multivallate  
Unknown  

Detailed Morphology:
Partial Univallate  
Univallate  
Partial Bivallate  
Bivallate  
Partial Multivallate  
Multivallate  

Surface Evidence

None

Enclosing Works (Surface):
None  
Earthen Bank  
Stone Wall  
Rubble  
Wall-walk  
Evidence of Timber  
Vitrification  
Other Burning  
Palisade  
Counter Scarp Bank  
Berm  
Unfinished  
Other  

Excavated Evidence

None

Enclosing Works (Excavation):
None  
Earthen Bank  
Stone Wall  
Murus Duplex  
Timber-framed  
Timber-laced  
Vitrification  
Other Burning  
Palisade  
Counter Scarp Bank  
Berm  
Unfinished  
No Known Excavation  
Other  

Other

Gang Working:
✗   None

Ditches:
✓   Between two and four ditches have been recorded

Number of Ditches:  4

Annex:
✗   None

References

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.



Terms of Use

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


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