Monument record MDO12 - Abbotsbury Castle on Wears Hill, Abbotsbury

A hillfort consisting of a roughly triangular enclosure on top of a ridge, enclosing around four and a half acres. There are two ramparts with a ditch between them on three sides of the hillfort, where the natural slope of the hill is steeper, and four ramparts at the south-eastern end, where there appears to have been some reconstruction. There appears to have been one original entrance, also at the south-eastern end of the fort. Slight earthworks of hut circles are visible in the interior.

Abbotsbury Castle on Wears Hill, 700' above OD. Internal area 4.5 acres, total area covered about 10 acres. The enclosure occupies partof the top of a ridge and is of roughly triangular form. The N, S and E sides are defended by two ramparts with a medieval ditch following the natural contours. At the SE end the defences consist of four ramparts of which the innermost, now of slight elevation appears to mark the original end of a single-ditched camp of the type associated with Iron Age 'A'. This early rampart was superceded by a new bank, raised outside and largely obliterating the early ditch, and supplemented by two new ditches, forming a complex characteristic of the Iron Age 'B'. At the W end there appears to have been an enlargement of the defences, but here the most notable addition is a small enclosure of squarish plan, with a ditch cutting through the main ramparts of the camp. It has been conjectured to be a Roman signal post, but there is no evidence [RCHM survey plan and sections]. <1> SY544866 Excavations at the south west corner of Abbotsbury Castle Hill-fort proved that a Roman Signal Station was not present. <2-4> The hillfort is clearly visible on aerial photographs and was digitally plotted during the the South Dorset Ridgeway Mapping Project. <7-8>

Record last edited

Jun 12 2023 12:29PM