Atlas of Hillforts of Britain and Ireland

EN0575 Great Wanney, Northumberland

LiDAR 1m DTM Hillshade

LiDAR 1m DTM Hillshade

Satellite Imagery

Satellite Imagery

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HER:  Northumberland 9500 (None)

NMR:  NY 98 SW 8 (19478)

SM:  1011102

NGR:  NY 93178 83378

X:  393170  Y:  583380  (OSGB36)

Summary

A univallate hillfort lying on a cliff edge at 312m OD on the highest point of Great Wanney Crag. It forms an irregular semi-circle in plan with a single bank and outer ditch which terminates on precipitous crags in the NW. It measures 97m NE-SW by 50m NW-SE with an earth and stone rampart 7m wide and 1.2m high externally and a 3m wide ditch. The remains are well defined except in the SW. A funnel-shaped entrance lies in the SE with a causeway across the ditch. No internal features are visible. The site is shown on 1856-65 OS mapping. Minimal investigations, undated. A line of cupmarked stones lie to the S of the enclosure.

Status

Citizen Science:  ✗

Reliability of Data:  Confirmed

Reliability of Interpretation:  Confirmed

Location

X:  -234738  Y:  7390009  (EPSG: 3857)

Longitude:  -2.1086909060329995  Latitude:  55.144746641888666  (EPSG:4326)

Country:  England; None

Current County or Unitary Authority:  Northumberland

Historic County:  Northumberland

Current Parish/Community/Council/Townland:  Kirkwhelpington; Corsenside

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 contour fort lying on a N-facing cliff-edge at 312m OD on the highest point of Great Wanney Crag

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:  Cliff edge

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

Altitude:  312.0m

Boundary

Parish boundary between Kirkwhelpington and Corsenside runs around the ramparts in the NW. This intersects with the parish boundary between Kirkwhelpington and Bavington and Corsenside and Bavington 85m to the S

Boundary Type:  Parish/Townland


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

Shown on 1856-65 OS mapping. Surveyed by Jobey c.1965. Field investigation 1967. Scheduled

Investigations:
Earthwork Survey (1965):   Jobey
Other (1967):   Field investigation
Other (1993):   Scheduled
1st Identified Map Depiction (None):   None

Interior Features

No known features

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

A funnel-shaped entrance lies in the SE with a causeway across the ditch

Total Number of Breaks Through Ramparts:  
1:   None

Number of Possible Original Entrances:  
2:   None

Guard Chambers:  ✗

Chevaux de Frise:  ✗

Entrances:
1. Out-turned (South east):   None

Enclosing Works

Irregular semi-circle with a single bank and outer ditch which terminates on the precipitous crags in the NW. It measures 97m NE-SW by 50m NW-SE with an earth and stone rampart 7m wide and 1.2m high externally and a 3m wide ditch.

Enclosed Area:
Area 1:   0.4ha.
Total:   0.4ha.

Total Footprint Area:  0.5ha.

Ramparts

None

Multi-period Enclosure System:
✗   Estimated from satellite imagery

Ramparts Form a Continuous Circuit:
✗   None

Number of Ramparts:  
NE Quadrant:   1
SE Quadrant:   1
SW Quadrant:   1
NW Quadrant:   None
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

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:
✓   None

Number of Ditches:  1

Annex:
✗   None

References

Hogg, A.H.A. 1946-50. A new list of native sites in Northumberland. Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Newcastle (4th Series) 11, 171

Jobey, G.1965. Hillforts and Settlements in Northumberland. Archaeol Aeliana (4th Series) 43



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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