Atlas of Hillforts of Britain and Ireland

EN3976 Tap's Combe Camp, Somerset

LiDAR 1m DTM Hillshade

LiDAR 1m DTM Hillshade

Satellite Imagery

Satellite Imagery

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HER:  North Somerset MNS340 (None)

NMR:  ST 46 NE 3 (194826)

SM:  1007909

NGR:  ST47806708

X:  347800  Y:  167080  (OSGB36)

Summary

Slight univallate hillfort, situated 115m east of Brockley Cottage, on end of carboniferous limestone spur overlooking gorge of Tap`s Combe to S and area of Levels to W. Sloping SE-NW sub-oval interior measures c. 132m E-W by 85m, with area c. 0.8ha. Single rampart on N, E and W, with bank 8m-10m wide and 0.5m-0.75m high and outer ditch, mostly infilled and buried feature, but also visible as depression c. 0.2m-0.35m deep and to 10m wide. S side is delineated by very steep natural cliff above Tap's Combe, now pitted with numerous small quarries. Two entrances, on NE and NW, former possibly modern, latter largest, and possibly original, 8m wide with, possibly medieval, blocked and damaged hollow way 25m long, 3m wide and c. 0.5m deep from the N. Grass and part coppice covered interior which now almost entirely forms a private garden. Whole site subject to piecemeal damage from gardening and domestic activities. Minimal investigations, undated.

Status

Citizen Science:  ✗

Reliability of Data:  Confirmed

Reliability of Interpretation:  Confirmed

Location

X:  -306328  Y:  6692408  (EPSG: 3857)

Longitude:  -2.7517912246730423  Latitude:  51.40028662095272  (EPSG:4326)

Country:  England

Current County or Unitary Authority:  North Somerset

Historic County:  Somerset

Current Parish/Community/Council/Townland:  Brockley

Monument Condition

Grass and part coppice covered interior which now almost entirely forms a private garden. Whole site is subject to piecemeal damage from gardening and domestic activities.

Condition:
Extant   ✓
Cropmark   ✗
Likely Destroyed   ✗

Land Use

Bank tree covered.

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

Slight, univallate, p[artial contour hillfort, situated 115m east of Brockley Cottage, on end of carboniferous limestone spur overlooking gorge of Tap`s Combe to S and area of Levels to W.

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

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

Altitude:  76.0m

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

None recorded.

Investigations:No related records

Interior Features

None.

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

Two entrances, on NE and NW, former possibly modern, latter largest, and possibly original, 8m wide with, possibly medieval, blocked and damaged hollow way 25m long, 3m wide and c. 0.5m deep from the N.

Total Number of Breaks Through Ramparts:  
2:   NE entrance possibly modern.

Number of Possible Original Entrances:  
2:   NW entrance possibly original.

Guard Chambers:  ✗

Chevaux de Frise:  ✗

Entrances:
1. Simple Gap (North west):   None
1. Hollow Way (North west):   Blocked and damaged hollow way.

Enclosing Works

Single rampart on N, E and W, with bank 8m-10m wide and 0.5m-0.75m high and outer ditch, mostly infilled and buried feature, but also visible as depression c. 0.2m-0.35m deep and to 10m wide. S side has very steep natural cliff above Tap's Combe providing defence, now pitted with numerous small quarries.

Enclosed Area:
Area 1:   0.8ha.
Total:   0.8ha.

Total Footprint Area:  Noneha.

Ramparts

None

Multi-period Enclosure System:
✗   None

Ramparts Form a Continuous Circuit:
✗   No rampart on S.

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

Stony construction.

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:
✓   Mostly infilled buried faeture.

Number of Ditches:  1

Annex:
✗   None

References

Burrow, I. 1981. Hillfort and hill-top settlement in Somerset in the first to eighth centuries AD, British Archaeological Report (BAR) British Series 1, 91, 244.



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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