LiDAR 1m DTM Hillshade
Satellite Imagery
LiDAR 1m DTM Hillshade
Satellite Imagery
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HER: Northumberland 982 (None)
NMR: NT 84 SE 41 (1401)
SM: 1006409
NGR: NT 8597 4020
X: 385973 Y: 640205 (OSGB36)
Lying 620m to the SE of Cornhill Castle on a ridge overlooking the River Tweed, the cropmarks of a double-ditched enclosure, probably a hillfort. It comprises a large ovoid enclosure averaging 160m by 105m internally, enclosing 1.38ha. The ditches are spaced 3-8m apart. Within the enclosure in the W is the cropmark of a smaller sub-circular enclosure of 0.18ha which occupies the narrowest part of the larger enclosure. Within the interior of this is a small hollow which might represent a round house. A further square enclosure, measuring 45m by 45m enclosing 0.2ha is appended to the sub-circular enclosure. Both of these are probably later and the cropmarks suggest three sequential phases of settlement, the earliest being the double-ditched ovoid enclosure. A modern road running NE-SW cuts centrally through all the enclosures and the location of entrances is unknown. Not recorded on OS mapping. Minimal investigations, undated. Scheduled as an enclosed settlement but considered to be a hillfort here based on enclosed area, location and scale of enclosing works..
Citizen Science: ✗
Reliability of Data: Confirmed
Reliability of Interpretation: Confirmed
X: -247628 Y: 7490081 (EPSG: 3857)
Longitude: -2.2244796489399774 Latitude: 55.65520493606438 (EPSG:4326)
Country: England
Current County or Unitary Authority: Northumberland
Historic County: Northumberland
Current Parish/Community/Council/Townland: Cornhill-on-Tweed
None
| Extant | ✗ |
| Cropmark | ✓ |
| Likely Destroyed | ✗ |
None
| Woodland | ✗ |
| Commercial Forestry Plantation | ✗ |
| Parkland | ✗ |
| Pasture (Grazing) | ✗ |
| Arable | ✓ |
| Scrub/Bracken | ✗ |
| Bare Outcrop | ✗ |
| Heather/Moorland | ✗ |
| Heath | ✗ |
| Built-up | ✗ |
| Coastal Grassland | ✗ |
| Other | ✗ |
A possible former contour fort lying on the summit of a hill at 70m OD
| Contour Fort | ✓ |
| Partial Contour Fort | ✗ |
| Promontory Fort | ✗ |
| Hillslope Fort | ✗ |
| Level Terrain Fort | ✗ |
| Marsh Fort | ✗ |
| Multiple Enclosure Fort | ✗ |
| Hilltop | ✓ |
| Coastal Promontory | ✗ |
| Inland Promontory | ✗ |
| Valley Bottom | ✗ |
| Knoll/Hillock/Outcrop | ✗ |
| Ridge | ✗ |
| Cliff/Plateau-edge/Scarp | ✗ |
| Hillslope | ✗ |
| Lowland | ✓ |
| Spur | ✗ |
Dominant Topographic Feature: Summit of a hill
| North | ✗ |
| Northeast | ✗ |
| East | ✗ |
| Southeast | ✗ |
| South | ✗ |
| Southwest | ✗ |
| West | ✗ |
| Northwest | ✗ |
| Level | ✓ |
Altitude: 70.0m
N/A
The site is undated
Reliability: D - None
| Pre 1200BC | ✗ |
| 1200BC - 800BC | ✗ |
| 800BC - 400BC | ✗ |
| 400BC - AD50 | ✗ |
| AD50 - AD400 | ✗ |
| AD400 - AD 800 | ✗ |
| Post AD800 | ✗ |
| Unknown | ✓ |
| Pre Hillfort: | None |
| Post Hillfort: | A small sub-circular enclosure and a square enclosure within the interior are probably later |
Recorded on aerial photographs from the 1970's and 80's. Scheduled
| Other (1970): | None |
| Other (1980): | Scheduled |
The cropmarks of a small sub-circular enclosure of 0.18ha which occupies the narrowest part of the larger enclosure in the W. Within the interior of this is a small hollow which might represent a round house. A further, square enclosure, measuring 45m by 45m enclosing 0.2ha is appended to the sub-circular enclosure. Both of these are probably later and the cropmarks suggest three sequential phases of settlement the earliest being the double-ditched enclosure or hillfort.
River Tweed to the W
| None | ✓ |
| Spring | ✗ |
| Stream | ✗ |
| Pool | ✗ |
| Flush | ✗ |
| Well | ✗ |
| Other | ✗ |
None
| No Known Features | ✓ |
| Round Stone Structures | ✗ |
| Rectangular Stone Structures | ✗ |
| Curvilinear Platforms | ✗ |
| Other Roundhouse Evidence | ✗ |
| Pits | ✗ |
| Quarry Hollows | ✗ |
| Other | ✗ |
None
| No Known Excavation | ✓ |
| Pits | ✗ |
| Postholes | ✗ |
| Roundhouses | ✗ |
| Rectangular Structures | ✗ |
| Roads/Tracks | ✗ |
| Quarry Hollows | ✗ |
| Other | ✗ |
| Nothing Found | ✗ |
None
| No Known Geophysics | ✓ |
| Pits | ✗ |
| Roundhouses | ✗ |
| Rectangular Structures | ✗ |
| Roads/Tracks | ✗ |
| Quarry Hollows | ✗ |
| Other | ✗ |
| Nothing Found | ✗ |
None
| No Known Finds | ✓ |
| Pottery | ✗ |
| Metal | ✗ |
| Metalworking | ✗ |
| Human Bones | ✗ |
| Animal Bones | ✗ |
| Lithics | ✗ |
| Environmental | ✗ |
| Other | ✗ |
Probable later enclosures
| APs Not Checked | ✗ |
| None | ✗ |
| Roundhouses | ✗ |
| Rectangular Structures | ✗ |
| Pits | ✗ |
| Postholes | ✗ |
| Roads/Tracks | ✗ |
| Other | ✓ |
The location of original entrances is unknown
| 4: | A modern road runs NE-SW through the enclosure |
| 2: | None |
Guard Chambers: ✗
Chevaux de Frise: ✗
Cropmarks of a large double-ditched ovoid enclosure averaging 160m by 105m internally, enclosing 1.38ha. The ditches are spaced 3-8m apart. Within the enclosure in the W is the cropmark of a smaller sub-circular enclosure of 0.18ha which occupies the narrowest part of the larger enclosure. A further square enclosure, measuring 45m by 45m enclosing 0.2ha is appended to the sub-circular enclosure
| Area 1: | 1.38ha. |
| Area 2: | 0.18ha. |
| Area 3: | 0.2ha. |
| Total: | 1.38ha. |
Total Footprint Area: Noneha.
None
| ✓ | The cropmarks suggest three sequential phases of settlement, the earliest being the double-ditched ovoid enclosure. |
| ✓ | Ditches |
| NE Quadrant: | 3 |
| SE Quadrant: | 3 |
| SW Quadrant: | 3 |
| NW Quadrant: | 3 |
| Total: | 3 |
| Partial Univallate | ✗ |
| Univallate | ✗ |
| Partial Bivallate | ✗ |
| Bivallate | ✗ |
| Partial Multivallate | ✗ |
| Multivallate | ✓ |
| Unknown | ✗ |
| Partial Univallate | ✗ |
| Univallate | ✓ |
| Partial Bivallate | ✗ |
| Bivallate | ✓ |
| Partial Multivallate | ✗ |
| Multivallate | ✓ |
None
| None | ✓ |
| Earthen Bank | ✗ |
| Stone Wall | ✗ |
| Rubble | ✗ |
| Wall-walk | ✗ |
| Evidence of Timber | ✗ |
| Vitrification | ✗ |
| Other Burning | ✗ |
| Palisade | ✗ |
| Counter Scarp Bank | ✗ |
| Berm | ✗ |
| Unfinished | ✗ |
| Other | ✗ |
None
| None | ✗ |
| Earthen Bank | ✗ |
| Stone Wall | ✗ |
| Murus Duplex | ✗ |
| Timber-framed | ✗ |
| Timber-laced | ✗ |
| Vitrification | ✗ |
| Other Burning | ✗ |
| Palisade | ✗ |
| Counter Scarp Bank | ✗ |
| Berm | ✗ |
| Unfinished | ✗ |
| No Known Excavation | ✓ |
| Other | ✗ |
| ✗ | None |
| ✓ | None |
Number of Ditches: 3
| ✗ | None |
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, 125-71.
Atlas of Hillforts:
Wikidata:
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
Document Version 1.1