Atlas of Hillforts of Britain and Ireland

EN0014 Dinmore Hill, Herefordshire

LiDAR 1m DTM Hillshade

LiDAR 1m DTM Hillshade

Satellite Imagery

Satellite Imagery

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HER:  Herefordshire MHE872 (1733)

NMR:  None (None)

SM:  None

NGR:  SO 520519

X:  352000  Y:  251900  (OSGB36)

Summary

Little is know about the site, which is a large, unscheduled, possible inland promontory fort located on a spur on a bend of the River Lugg. There is a single bank and rock-cut ditch on the W. Earthworks at the E end have been confirmed by aerial photography and geophysics and confirmed by excavation. The W bank effectively cuts off the promontory, with steep slopes on the other three sides, and could be interpreted as a possible cross-dyke. The site was the subject of Time Team investigations in 2009, report forthcoming. Mostly wooded site with some improved pasture. Undated. On 1st Ed. OS map (1888).

Status

Citizen Science:  ✗

Reliability of Data:  Unconfirmed

Reliability of Interpretation:  Unconfirmed

Location

X:  -300916  Y:  6829695  (EPSG: 3857)

Longitude:  -2.7031767209465327  Latitude:  52.16323670276651  (EPSG:4326)

Country:  England

Current County or Unitary Authority:  Herefordshire

Historic County:  Herefordshire

Current Parish/Community/Council/Townland:  Hope under Dinmore

Monument Condition

Little is known about the site, but damaged.

Condition:
Extant   ✓
Cropmark   ✗
Likely Destroyed   ✗

Land Use

Wooded and improved pasture.

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

The location of the site is not exact. Located on NE spur slopes on a bend of the River Lugg.

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:  Spur above the River Lugg.

Aspect:
North   ✗
Northeast   ✓
East   ✗
Southeast   ✗
South   ✗
Southwest   ✗
West   ✗
Northwest   ✗
Level   ✗

Altitude:  160.0m

Boundary

N/A


Dating Evidence

None

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

On 1st Ed. OS map (1888). Time Team investigation 2009. Detail not known and report forthcoming but environmental sampling undertaken. Herefordshire Council survey. 2009 Geophysical survey, GSB (available on ADS, Oasis report no: gsbprosp1-75274).

Investigations:
1st Identified Map Depiction (1888):   OS map
Excavation (2009):   Report forthcoming of excavation detail.
Geophysical Survey (2009):   GSB (available on ADS, Oasis report no: gsbprosp1-75274).
Other (2012):   Herefordshire Council survey.

Interior Features

Antler fragment dated to 1450 BC. Charcoal. Excavation report forthcoming.

Water Source

River Lugg located 0.6 km outside the hillfort.

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

Excavation report forthcoming.

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

Geophysics

Report on geophysics forthcoming.

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

Finds

Antler fragment dated to 1450 BC. Charcoal and waterlogged ditch deposits. Carbonised grain.

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

No entrances have yet been determined, but report forthcoming.

Total Number of Breaks Through Ramparts:  
0:   No entrances or breaks have been determined

Number of Possible Original Entrances:  
2:   None determined.

Guard Chambers:  ✗

Chevaux de Frise:  ✗

Entrances:No related records

Enclosing Works

There is a single rampart and ditch and rock cut ditch and bank to W and earthworks at the E end have been confirmed by excavation. The W bank effectively cuts off the promontory, with steep slopes on the other three sides, and could be interpreted as a possible cross-dyke.

Enclosed Area:
Area 1:   9.6ha.
Total:   9.6ha.

Total Footprint Area:  Noneha.

Ramparts

None

Multi-period Enclosure System:
✗   Much has yet to be determined as to the exact boundary of the site.

Ramparts Form a Continuous Circuit:
✗   No detail known but single rampart and ditch and rock cut ditch and bank to W and earthworks at the E end have been confirmed by excavation. Quadrants here postulated.

Number of Ramparts:  
NE Quadrant:   1
SE Quadrant:   1
SW Quadrant:   0
NW Quadrant:   1
Total:   1

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

Single rampart and ditch and rock-cut ditch and bank to W and earthworks at the E end have been confirmed by excavation.

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:
✓   Rock-cut ditch to the W bank determined. Aerial photographs determined ditch cut some 2m into clay soils. Geophysics found rock cut ditch butt end to 1.5m deep to SE.

Number of Ditches:  1

Annex:
✗   None

References

Dorling, P. and Wigley, A. 2012. Assessment of the archaeological and conservation status of major later prehistoric enclosures in Herefordshire and Shropshire, EH PNUM, Version 3.2, Hereford and Shrewsbury: Herefordshire Council/Shropshire Council.

Pryor, F., Dorling, P. and Ray, K. forthcoming. Surveys and excavation on Dinmore Hill, Herefordshire, Herefordshire Archaeology Report.



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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