Newcastle, Town Moor, possible prehistoric settlement

HER Number:
5895

District:
Newcastle

Site Name:
Newcastle, Town Moor, possible prehistoric settlement

Place:
Newcastle

Map Sheet:
NZ26NW

Class:
Monument

Site Type: Broad:

Site Type: Specific:
Enclosure

General Period:
Prehistoric

Specific Period:

Form of Evidence:
Earthwork

Description:
To the south of the racecourse embankment on the eastward facing slope of Race Hill lies a small circular earthwork enclosure measuring about 32 metres in diameter. It is defined on the upslope side by a low bank, 0.3 metres high, which has an external ditch which measures 0.2 metres deep. On the downslope side there is an apron scarp which measures about 0.4 metres high. There is a flattened area to the east at the junction of the bank and ditch with the start of the apron scarp which could be an entrance. Internal features are slight, the most obvious being a small mound with a hollow in its centre which could be an unfinished mine shaft. The site has been further damaged on its south-west corner by some digging which has produced a right-angled scarp, 0.4 metres high. The surrounding ridge and furrow appears to stop at the ditch although it is unclear whether or not the ditch cuts the rig. Drainage ditches cut down the centre of the furrows also cut through the bank, complicating the picture. The shape and form of the earthwork lends itself to tentative interpretation as a small enclosed settlement. However the lack of any clear relationship with the ridge and furrow means that dating is impossible.

Easting:
2387

Northing:
6633

Grid Reference:
NZ23876633

Lats/Lons:

Sources:
<< HER 5895 >> RCHME, 1995, Town Moor, Newcastle upon Tyne, Archaeological Survey Report, p 53; English Heritage, 2008, Hadrian's Wall National Mapping Programme, 1029787; Aerial Photograph RAF 58/B/32 5241 16-MAY-1948