Atlas of Hillforts of Britain and Ireland

EN4272 The Round, Kenwyn, Cornwall (Bosvisack)

LiDAR 1m DTM Hillshade

LiDAR 1m DTM Hillshade

Satellite Imagery

Satellite Imagery

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HER:  Cornwall and Scilly 19224 (None)

NMR:  SW 7 4 NE 15 (427852)

SM:  1016065

NGR:  SW78264625

X:  178264  Y:  46262  (OSGB36)

Summary

Possible, small, multivallate hillslope fort or round located at E end of SE-facing spur between two arms of River Kenwyn, confluence 650m to E. Steep slopes, less along ridge to NW. Circular defended area c.140m by 160m, enclosing level interior of 2.25ha. Inner and outer banks outer banks partly preserved within modern hedge-banks. Outer bank is, in places, 3m wide in places and 1.2 metres high with additional 1m drop on exterior. Elsewhere, line of outer rampart shows in break of slope. Inner bank, some 15m inside outer bank, recorded in early 20th century, but no longer visible. Improved pasture interior, scrub and trees on banks. Badly damaged. On 1st Ed. OS map (1880).

Status

Citizen Science:  ✗

Reliability of Data:  Confirmed

Reliability of Interpretation:  Unconfirmed

Location

X:  -569216  Y:  6493954  (EPSG: 3857)

Longitude:  -5.113353108639948  Latitude:  50.27451716680594  (EPSG:4326)

Country:  England

Current County or Unitary Authority:  Cornwall

Historic County:  Cornwall

Current Parish/Community/Council/Townland:  Kenwyn

Monument Condition

Badly damaged and part levelled.

Condition:
Extant   ✓
Cropmark   ✗
Likely Destroyed   ✗

Land Use

Improved pasture interior, scrub and trees on banks.

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

Possible, small, multivallate hillslope fort or round located at E end of SE-facing spur between two arms of River Kenwyn, confluence 650m to E. Steep slopes, less along ridge to NW.

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:  Hillslope

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

Altitude:  91.0m

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 (1880). Field investigation Ordnance Survey 1965.

Investigations:
1st Identified Map Depiction (1880):   OS map.
Other (1965):   Field investigation OS.

Interior Features

Remains of possible roundhouses as mounds reported, but cultivated and no longer visible.

Water Source

None

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

Surface

Remains of possible roundhouses as mounds reported, but cultivated and no longer visible.

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

Not defined.

Total Number of Breaks Through Ramparts:  
0:   None

Number of Possible Original Entrances:  
2:   None

Guard Chambers:  ✗

Chevaux de Frise:  ✗

Entrances:No related records

Enclosing Works

Inner and outer banks outer banks partly preserved within modern hedge-banks. Outer bank is, in places, 3m wide in places and 1.2 metres high with additional 1m drop on exterior. Elsewhere, line of outer rampart shows in break of slope. Inner bank, some 15m inside outer bank, recorded in early 20th century, but no longer visible.

Enclosed Area:
Area 1:   2.25ha.
Total:   2.25ha.

Total Footprint Area:  Noneha.

Ramparts

None

Multi-period Enclosure System:
✗   None

Ramparts Form a Continuous Circuit:
✓   Present quadrants estimated as inner bank thought no longer visible.

Number of Ramparts:  
NE Quadrant:   2
SE Quadrant:   2
SW Quadrant:   2
NW Quadrant:   2
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:
✓   Number estimated.

Number of Ditches:  2

Annex:
✗   None

References

Page, W. ed. 1906. The Victoria history of the County of Cornwall, Vol I, 466, The Victoria History of the Counties of England.



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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