Atlas of Hillforts of Britain and Ireland

EN0630 Penhargard Castle, Cornwall

LiDAR 1m DTM Hillshade

LiDAR 1m DTM Hillshade

Satellite Imagery

Satellite Imagery

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HER:  Cornwall and Scilly MCO73 (4300)

NMR:  SX 06 NE 18 (431330)

SM:  1004425

NGR:  SX 0584 6995

X:  205840  Y:  69950  (OSGB36)

Summary

Oval, partly bivallate, hillfort located on prominent WNW-facing slope of ridge above steep S valley side of tributary of the River Camel. Enclosed area up to 89m in diameter and c. 0.2ha area. Single inner rampart and part-buried outer ditch on all except SE and S, where second closely-spaced outer rampart and ditch. Here this outer rampart fades out on downhill side, but along uphill side it runs E and NE as flanking work. Inner rampart best on S where 2.3m above ditch, but to N now a scarp to 1.6m high with traces of slight terrace, but no ditch visible and possibly buried feature. Simple entrance to SW where through both ramparts. Interior artificially levelled to form two distinct platforms. Despite tree cover survives well. On OS 1" map of 1813. Undated.

Status

Citizen Science:  ✗

Reliability of Data:  Confirmed

Reliability of Interpretation:  Confirmed

Location

X:  -527551  Y:  6532801  (EPSG: 3857)

Longitude:  -4.7390736315861615  Latitude:  50.497027337757686  (EPSG:4326)

Country:  England; None

Current County or Unitary Authority:  Cornwall

Historic County:  Cornwall

Current Parish/Community/Council/Townland:  Helland; St. Mabyn

Monument Condition

Despite tree cover survives well.

Condition:
Extant   ✓
Cropmark   ✗
Likely Destroyed   ✗

Land Use

Wooded site.

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

Oval, partly bivallate hillfort located on prominent WNW-facing slope of ridge above steep S valley side of tributary of River Camel.

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

Topographic Position

Located on a steep north slope above a steep river valley

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

Dominant Topographic Feature:  Spur

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

Altitude:  92.0m

Boundary

Close to parish boundary

Boundary Type:  Parish/Townland


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 OS 1" map of 1813. First described by H. MacLauchlan, 1850. On 1st Ed. OS map (1881).

Investigations:
1st Identified Map Depiction (1813):   OS map.
1st Identified Written Reference (1850):   First described by H. MacLauchlan.
Other (1881):   OS map.

Interior Features

Interior artificially levelled to form two distinct platforms.

Water Source

None

Source:
None   ✓
Spring   ✗
Stream   ✗
Pool   ✗
Flush   ✗
Well   ✗
Other   ✗

Surface

Interior artificially levelled to form two distinct platforms, but their exact nature not determined.

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

Simple entrance through both ramparts to SW.

Total Number of Breaks Through Ramparts:  
1:   None

Number of Possible Original Entrances:  
2:   None

Guard Chambers:  ✗

Chevaux de Frise:  ✗

Entrances:
1. Simple Gap (South west):   None

Enclosing Works

Single inner rampart and part-buried outer ditch on all except SE and S, where second closely-spaced outer rampart and ditch. Here this outer rampart fades out on downhill side, but along uphill side it runs E and NE as flanking work. Inner rampart best on S where 2.3m above ditch, but to N now a scarp to 1.6m high with traces of slight terrace, but no ditch visible and possibly buried feature.

Enclosed Area:
Area 1:   0.2ha.
Total:   0.2ha.

Total Footprint Area:  Noneha.

Ramparts

None

Multi-period Enclosure System:
✗   None

Ramparts Form a Continuous Circuit:
✓   None

Number of Ramparts:  
NE Quadrant:   1
SE Quadrant:   2
SW Quadrant:   2
NW Quadrant:   1
Total:   2

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:
✓   Part-buried in places.

Number of Ditches:  2

Annex:
✗   None

References

Maclean, J. 1876. A Parochial and Family History of the Deanery of Trigg Minor, Vol 2, 5.

MacLauchlan, H. 1850. Report, Royal Inst Cornwall , 37, 32-40.



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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