23 CROSBY RAVENSWORTH
(with Crosby Ravensworth Fell) (E.c.)
(O.S. 6 in. (a)XIV, N.E., (b)XIV, S.E., (c)XXI, N.E.,
(d)XXI, S.E., (e)XXII, N.W., (f)XXII, S.W.)
Crosby Ravensworth is a large parish with a village
5 m. S.W. of Appleby. The church, Maulds Meaburn
Hall, Crake Trees and the village settlements at Ewe
Close and elsewhere are the principal monuments. The
pre- and proto-historic monuments in the parish are
unusually numerous and important.
Ecclesiastical
b(1). Parish Church of St. Lawrence (Plate 94)
stands in the village. The walls are of local sandstone
rubble with dressings of the same material; the roofs
are slate-covered. The piers and arches of the Crossing
indicate that there was a late 12th or early 13th-century
cruciform church of some size and importance; it
had a N. aisle as indicated by the E. respond of the
N. arcade and the arch in the W. wall of the transept.
The S. arcade was built and the South Aisle added
c. 1230–40, and very shortly after the N. arcade was
re-built. The North Chapel appears to have been added
in the second half of the 14th century, and the West
Tower was built probably late in the 15th century.
Early in the 16th century the arch opening into the
N. chapel was re-built to accommodate a monument.
The church is said to have been re-built in 1811, but
the work can only have been partial and probably
included much of the tower; an extensive and drastic
restoration was begun c. 1860, the Transepts being
re-built in 1871–2 and the Chancel and Aisles about
the same time.
Crosby Ravensworth, Parish Church of St. Lawrence
The details of the crossing, arcades and S. doorway
are of considerable interest, and among the fittings
the font and a coffin-lid are noteworthy.
Architectural Description—The Chancel (39 ft. by
18 ft.) has no ancient features except the early 16th-century arch in the N. wall; this has moulded responds
and flat segmental arch with moulded labels; the S.
label has stops carved with a man's head and a modern
shield; the N. label has three shields, two of Threlkeld
and the third of Threlkeld impaling Bromfleet quartering Vescy.
The North Chapel (20 ft. by 10½ ft.) has a mid 14th-century E. window of two cinque-foiled ogee lights
with a quatrefoil in a two-centred head with a moulded
label. In the N. wall is a similar window and a 14th-century doorway with moulded jambs, two-centred
head and label.
The Crossing (18 ft. by 16½ ft.) has a modern E.
arch. The other three arches are of late 12th or early
13th-century date, two-centred and of three chamfered orders; the responds have each two round and
one keeled attached shafts with plain capitals, partly
restored, and square chamfered abaci, common to the
whole respond. The arcade above the W. arch is
modern.
The Nave (47½ ft. by 18¼ ft.) has 13th-century N.
and S. arcades of three bays with two-centred arches
of two chamfered orders with chamfered labels; the
quatre-foiled piers have filleted shafts with moulded
bases and capitals; the capitals on the S. have nailhead ornament; the N.W. respond and the two on
the S. have each a round shaft with a moulded capital
and base; the bases of the W. responds are modern,
the S.W. respond has a moulded band in addition;
the late 12th or early 13th-century N.E. respond is
lower than, but generally similar to, the responds of
the crossing. The clearstorey is modern.
The North Aisle (11½ ft. wide) is modern except for
the partly restored late 12th or early 13th-century arch
opening into the transept; it is two-centred and of
three chamfered orders; the responds are similar to
the N.E. respond of the nave.
The South Aisle (8 ft. wide) is modern except for
the E. arch and the S. doorway. The partly restored
13th-century E. arch is two-centred and of two chamfered
orders; the responds have each a round shaft
with moulded base and capital. The 13th-century S.
doorway (Plate 12) has a two-centred arch of three
moulded orders with a moulded label and carved stops;
the inner and middle orders have dog-tooth ornament
and the inner order is repeated on the jambs, without
the dog-tooth, the other orders rest on free shafts with
moulded bases and capitals.
The West Tower (about 12 ft. square) is of three
stages, ashlar-faced and with a splayed plinth. The
two lower stages are probably of late 15th-century
date and the top stage is modern. The two-centred
tower-arch is of one continuous chamfered order;
above it are the marks of a low-pitched roof and a
cambered ceiling much below the present roof. The
W. window is of three plain lights with vertical tracery
in a two-centred head. The second stage has a looplight in the S. wall.
Fittings—Churchyard Cross: S. of transept, square
base and chamfered square tapering shaft, mediæval.
Coffin Lids: In churchyard—N. of N. chapel,
(1) narrow tapering slab with ornamental cross on
stepped base and shears at side; (2) broken tapering
slab with moulded edges; (3) slab with ornamental
cross and shield of Threlkeld with a label; (4 and 5)
tapering slabs with chamfered edges; (3) early 14th-century, rest probably 13th-century. Font: octagonal
bowl with rounded underside and the date 1662, plain
stem and rounded base. Monument and Floor-slabs.
Monument: In N. chapel—altar-tomb (Plate 94) with
roll-moulded angles, fluted and reeded sides, chamfered
base and heavy marble slab, three blank shields on
each of the long sides, ascribed to Sir Lancelot Threlkeld, 1512. Floor-slabs: In N. chapel—(1) to M.L.
1683 and I.L. 1689. In churchyard—N. of vestry,
(2) fragment with the name Hood; S. of porch,
(3) with small incised cross, (4) with incised chalice.
Condition—Good, largely re-built.
Secular
b(2). Homestead Moat, at Crosby Ravensworth
Hall, immediately W. of the church, forms a polygonal
island. The E. arm and part of the S.E. arm have
been filled in. There are traces of an outer bank on
the N.W. and S.W. and of an inner bank near the N.
angle.
b(3). Park Pale or enclosure, 300 yards W.N.W. of
the church, is of polygonal form and about 20 acres
in extent. It is surrounded by a bank about 12 ft.
wide and 2 ft. high, with traces of an inner ditch.
Condition—Bad.
b(4). Village Site at Maulds Meaburn, about 1 m.
N. of the church, is indicated by a series of banks and
foundation-mounds mainly behind the line of existing
houses on the W. of Lyvennet Beck. The remains
are too fragmentary for a definite plan to be laid
down. On the opposite side of the beck are traces
of further foundations and banks. The site is probably mediæval.
Condition—Bad.
b(5). Monk's Bridge, over Lyvennet Beck, 100
yards N.E. of the church, is a rubble structure of two
spans with a roadway 7¾ ft. wide. The arches are
segmental and the central pier has cutwaters both up
and down stream. The bridge was built probably in
the 17th century.
Condition—Good.
b(6). Maulds Meaburn Hall, nearly 1½ m. N. of
the church, is partly of two and partly of three storeys;
the walls are of rubble and the roofs are slate-covered.
The property belonged to the Vernon family in the
later middle ages and passed from them to Sir John
Lowther in 1602. It ceased to be a residence of that
family c. 1750. The main block of the house seems
to have been re-built late in the 16th century, but may
incorporate earlier walls. The S. wing was dated
1610 and appears to have been altered in 1676 when
the staircase-wing was added. The buildings at the
N. end of the main block were added late in the 17th
and during the 18th century. The S. part of the main
block was pulled down after 1750 and re-built, of one
storey only, in the 19th century.
The great staircase is a good example of its period.
The E. front of the main block is now partly of two
storeys and partly of one modern storey. The old
part towards the N. has traces of a former porch; the
original square-headed doorway now forms a window
and the modern doorway, S. of it, has a re-set 17th-century lintel above it with a shield-of-arms of Lowther.
The upper storey has two 16th-century transomed and
mullioned windows with moulded labels; the gabled
dormer above has a three-light window. The N. and
S. wings retain some 17th-century windows, more or
less altered, and in the E. wall of the S. wing is a doorway with two arched sinkings on the lintel (Plate 30)
and a panel with the date 1610 subsequently altered to
1676. The S. side of this wing has a series of early 17th-century mullioned and transomed windows with
moulded labels. On the W. side of the house, the staircase retains some late 17th-century mullioned windows,
but the original windows in the surviving part of the
main block have been altered. The kitchen-wing is
probably of the 18th century. Inside the main block,
the ground floor has two original fireplaces, the larger
with a segmental arch and the southern with a triangular
arch in a square head; there is also a doorway with a
head of similar form. In the N.E. angle is a spiral
staircase entered by a doorway with a three-centred
head. The main staircase is approached by a doorway,
formerly a two-light window; the late 17th-century
staircase (Plate 95) has heavy turned balusters, square
newels with ball-terminals and applied husk-ornament,
moulded grip-handrails and strings.
The forecourt, E. of the house, has, in the E. wall,
a late 17th-century gateway with rusticated piers and
ball-terminals; the lowest course has a double-spiral
enrichment. To the S. of the house is the former
bowling-green with 18th-century summer-houses at
the two S. angles. The farm-buildings, N. of the
house, have been mostly re-built, but one of them
retains a segmental arch and a panel with the initials
and date R.L. 1693. The S.E. building was probably
a late 17th-century cottage or lodge and retains some
original features.
Condition—Good.
b(7). Crake Trees, house, about 1,000 yards N.W.
of the church, is of two storeys; the walls are of
rubble and the roofs that survive are slate-covered.
It is said to have belonged to the family of Lancaster
and seems to have been built late in the 14th or early
in the 15th century. It was of the local mediæval
type, with a single-storeyed hall-block and wings at
the N. and S. ends; the S. wing was of the semifortified type and probably carried up as a tower. The
main block was remodelled at various times and an
upper storey added; the house has long been abandoned and is now roofless and ruined, except the S.
wing which has been much reduced in height and is
covered with a modern roof. The E. front has 16th
or 17th-century windows on both floors, some of the
upper ones lacking their mullions; the porch is an
addition of the same age and within it is a doorway
with a triangular arch in a square head. N. of the
porch is a 15th or early 16th-century window with an
ogee finialed head cut on the lintel and a rampant
leopard carved on the tympanum. The W. side and
N. end retain some 16th or 17th-century windows.
The S. wing has a re-set 14th-century window-head of
one trefoiled ogee light in the S. wall; in the W. wall
is a square-headed window; adjoining the wing on
this side is a projection enclosing a spiral staircase.
The ground floor of the S. wing has an elliptical
barrel-vault and a cross-wall. It is entered from the
hall-block by a late 14th or early 15th-century doorway
with chamfered jambs and shouldered head. The
main block and the N. wing retain some 16th and
17th-century fireplaces, one having a triangular arch
in a square head. At the N.W. angle of the N. wing
is a spiral staircase.
Condition—Ruined.
b(8). Reagill Grange (Plate 21), over 1½ m. N.N.W.
of the church, is of two storeys; the walls are of rubble
and the roofs are slate-covered. It appears to have
belonged to the families of Wharton and Daws. The
main block was built late in the 16th century and the
N. wing was added in 1700. The house retains many
of its original windows with moulded labels, but some
of them have lost their mullions. On the S. front is
a two-storeyed porch with an original doorway having
a triangular arch in a square head and fitted with a
nail-studded door. At the back is a gabled projection
enclosing a newel staircase. The windows of the N.
wing have been mostly altered; there is a re-set door-head with the initials and date T. and E.D. 1700, and
a window with a re-set pointed head. The chimneystacks of the main block have cylindrical shafts. Inside
the building are some original stone doorways and
above a fireplace on the first floor is a panel with the
modern date 1652.
There is said to have been a chapel about 70 yards
N.E. of the house, but the site is overgrown and there
are now no visible traces of walls or foundations.
Condition—Good.
Monuments (9–24)
The following monuments, unless otherwise
described, are of the 17th century and of two storeys;
the walls are of rubble and the roofs are slate-covered.
Some of the buildings have exposed ceiling-beams.
Condition—Good or fairly good.
a(9). Reagill School, 600 yards N.W. of (8), is of one
storey. It is said to have been founded by the Rev.
Randal Sanderson and has been lengthened towards
the S. The E. doorway has the initials and date R.S.
1684 and a Greek inscription. In the N. wall is a
re-set 15th-century window from the church. It is of
three trefoiled lights in a round head with a moulded
label.
a(10). Barnskew, house, over 1 m. N. of (6), has
18th-century additions on the N. and S. The former
doorway, now a window, has an embattled enrichment
on the lintel, the initials and date H.H. (or M.) H.
1676 and a moulded label. Inside the building is a
fireplace with an embattled sinking on the lintel. In
an outbuilding is a doorway with a re-set triangular
arch in a square head.
b(11). School House, cottage on the W. side of the
green, 550 yards S. of (6), retains some original stone
windows.
b(12). Meaburn Hill Farm, house, 510 yards S. of
(11) and ¾ m. N.N.W. of the church, has an early
18th-century extension on the N. The older part
retains some original windows and the extension has
a doorway with the initials and date I.A.S. 1708.
Inside the building is an original panelled heck or
screen and an early 18th-century fireplace with a
corbelled head.
Dyke at Crosby Ravensworth
b(13). Hill Top Farm, house, 200 yards S. of (12),
has some original windows with a continuous dripcourse above both ranges.
b(14). High Dalebanks, house, over 1 m. S.W. of the
church, is modern but incorporates a lintel with the
initials and date I.L. 1693.
c(15). Lane Head, house, 700 yards S.W. of (14),
appears to have been re-built in the 18th century but
retains two older cupboards; the larger is of three
stages recessed at the top and having a carved fascia
with the date 1669, supported on two balusters; the
small cupboard has the initials and date R. and I.G.
1695 on the door.
c(16). House and outbuilding at the E. end of
Oddendale and nearly 2 m. W.S.W. of the church.
The House retains two original windows. The Outbuilding, N.E. of the house, has a doorway with a
triangular arch in a square head and the initials and
date I.A. 1677.
c(17). Outbuilding, 60 yards W. of (16), retains an
original doorway.
c(18). Gilts, house and outbuilding, nearly 2 m. S.
of the church. The House has 18th-century additions
on the N. and N.E. The W. front retains some
original windows, now blocked, and there is a continuous drip-course above both ranges. The re-set
doorway has the initials and date I.E.W. 1680. Inside
the building is a little original panelling and a doorway
with an ogee-shaped head of wood. The Outbuilding,
S.W. of the house, has a doorway with an ogee head
and the initials and date I.W. 1675.
c(19). Crosby Lodge, house, 770 yards W.N.W. of
(18), has been much altered. Re-set in the stables is
a lintel with the initials and date C.R. 1701.
c(20). Hause Farm, house, about 3¼ m. S.W. of the
church, has a projection with a spiral staircase on the
W. side. The main E. doorway has moulded jambs
and square head (Plate 30) with the initials and date E.
and A.P. 1685 in an enriched panel on the lintel; flanking the lintel are shaped stone brackets, and above it is a
moulded string-course. The W. doorway has a
double-arched enrichment on the lintel. Inside the
building is a doorway with an ogee head of wood;
there is also a fireplace with curvilinear enrichment on
the lintel. In the middle room is a two-stage cupboard with a carved fascia and the initials and date
E. and A.P. 1687; the bottom-rail has the date 1618
and may be re-used material.
d(21). Beck Head, house, 900 yards S. of (20), has
18th-century extensions on the S. and S.E. The doorway has a triangular arch in a square head and an
enriched lintel with the initials and date R. and E.A.
1682 T. and E.A. On the W. side is a spiral staircase
in a three-sided projection.
d(22). Salterwath, house, on the E. side of Birk Beck,
4¼ m. S.W. of the church, contains a small cupboard
with the date 1696. Another cupboard has been
removed to Shap Wells Hotel.
d(23). Gibsonhill, house, 1,080 yards S. of (22), has
been much altered or re-built in the 18th century. It
contains the front of a two-stage cupboard with the
initials and date W.W., E.W. 1600 R.W., W.E.
d(24). House at Scout Green nearly 5 m. S.S.W. of
the church, contains a two-stage cupboard with
enriched upper panels, fascia and pendants.
Unclassified
c(25). Ewe Close, village settlement (850 ft. above
O.D.), S.W. of Dalebank Beck and over 1 m. S.W. of
the church, consists of an almost square walled village
with roughly rounded angles and 1¼ acres in extent.
To the E. and attached to it are irregular stone-walled
enclosures of the usual type covering an area of nearly
2 acres. Immediately adjoining and to the S.E. of the
entrance to the main village is a group of huts and
one or two irregular enclosures. The walls are everywhere about 6 ft. thick and of orthostatic construction.
The middle of the village proper is occupied by a
great circular stone-paved hut of 50 ft. internal diameter, and close to it is a smaller hut containing a
fireplace. Other huts are grouped within the enclosure, flanking the entrance, which is near the middle
of the S. side of the village. In the eastern sector
are two structures of a later date. One is a rectangular
building (in shape and size comparable to what Prof.
Collingwood considers to be the form of the early
Teutonic house) and immediately N. of it is a structure
which may have been a cattle byre with attached yard.
Incorporating the southern extension and around
the site are traces of banks some of which are ditched.
Some of these may have formed the enclosures of the
farm to which the two later structures belonged.
The site was excavated by W.G. Collingwood
in 1907–08 (C. and W. Trans., N.S. VIII–IX). Nothing
was found to prove an earlier occupation than the
Roman period, but the inhabitants appear to have
been low in the cultural scale. The siting of the
Roman road which takes a devious line apparently to
pass Ewe Close would seem to indicate that the village
was already in existence when the road was made.
The pottery found includes the rim of a 2nd-century
cooking-pot and the rim of a hammer-headed mortarium
of late 3rd or early 4th-century date. They are now in
the Tullie House Museum, Carlisle.
In the angle (marked Grave) was found a grave built
of cobbles and floored with stone, in which was a
skeleton together with the base of a red pot and fragments of another pot. (For details of other finds, see
C. and W. Trans., N.S. IX, p. 306.)
Condition—Poor.
"Ewe Close" in the parish of Crosby Ravensworth
c(26). Ewe Locks, village settlement (950 ft. above
O.D.), nearly 1½ m. S.S.W. of the church, is situated on
the nearly level moor and consists of a large northern
and a smaller southern group at a distance apart of some
60 yards. The northern group consists of an oval enclosure and a smaller attached square enclosure, the two
covering an area of a little over an acre. According to
Prof. Collingwood, who made some examination of the
site, both have 6 ft. walls with granite orthostats. It
has been suggested that the square enclosure may be
of later date—similar features exist at Urswick Stone
Walls and in the most northerly settlement at Crosby
Garrett—but no definite evidence has yet been obtained
on this point.
"Ewe Locks" Settlement in the Parish of Crosby Ravensworth.
The southern group consists of at least one circular
hut and three small enclosures.
Cow Green Settlement, Crosby Ravensworth Parish.
Two rectangular buildings of later date have been
incorporated in the northern group. Each is roughly
20 ft. by 15 ft. internally and has walls with orthostatic
boulders. (C. and W. Trans., N.S. XXXIII, 207.)
Condition—Poor.
c(27). Cow Green, village settlement (830 ft.
above O.D.), about 1¾ m. S.S.W. of the church, stands
almost on the W. edge of the ravine of Lyvennet
Beck. It consists of two groups of enclosures, the
eastern of which is rather better preserved than is the
western. In all probability the enclosures were
originally joined, the gap between them being caused
at a later date to provide access to the stone house (see
monument (36a)), which lies to the S. of the settlement.
In the W. group there seems to have been one hut
and towards the S. end of the S.E. wall of the enclosure
is a definite entrance. A doorway also pierces the wall
between two of the enclosures towards the N.E. of this
group. The E. group consists of roughly rectangular
buildings, with adjoining irregularly shaped enclosures.
There are still a number of orthostats or orthostatic
boulders left, the walls being apparently about 5–5½ ft.
thick.
Condition—Poor.
c(28). Burwens, village settlement (850 ft. above
O.D.), about 500 yards E.N.E. of (27), consists of a
roughly rectangular enclosure nearly 1 acre in area
and forming the village itself. Foundations of fielddivisions, adjacent to it on the E. and N., enclose
an area of a further 3 or 4 acres. The village-walls
are very well marked, indeed more so than on any
similar site in the district. There is an entrance at the
N.W. end, consisting of a rising passage from which
run two roadways. That diverging to the right runs
S.E. past a group of hut-circles abutting on the wall
and two isolated huts. One of these, about 25 ft. in
diameter, is the chief hut of the settlement. Openings
between these huts lead to spaces which may be
cattle-pens. The other roadway, diverging to the left,
runs to the E. and again leads to pens and huts,
two of which seem to have either forecourts or
ante-chambers.
"Burwens", Settlement in Crosby Ravensworth Parish.
Settlement at Crosby Ravensworth
The adjacent field-walls show less distinctly, the
walls being slighter in build. A ramped causeway has
been formed through the field-wall immediately E. of
the enclosure.
Condition—Fairly good.
e(29). Village Settlement (920 ft. above O.D.),
on the E. side of Ravens Gill and 250 yards E. of
Gilts Farm (18), is nearly ½ acre in extent. Very
little can now be seen beyond the line of the main
enclosing wall. The enclosure is egg-shaped with the
apex towards the S. There are signs of a possible
entrance on the W. side near the N.W. end. Internally
there are very faint traces of walls forming the usual
enclosures and faint suggestions of two or three huts
against the main enclosing wall.
Condition—Bad.
e(30). Village Settlement (900 ft. above O.D.),
300 yards N.E. of (18), is about ¾ acre in extent, and
has been much damaged by ploughing. Its outline
is irregular and from the southern half of the N.W.
side there is a projection of irregular shape. There
are indications of an entrance with an internal
passage-way at the re-entrant angle. Internally, the
enclosure shows traces of the usual irregular subdivisions, while there are suggestions of a roughly
square structure in the N.E. corner. The remains
are turf-covered.
Settlement at Crosby Ravensworth
Condition—Bad.
e(31). Village Settlement (900 ft. above O.D.),
about ½ m. N.E. of (18), is rather over 2 acres in
extent and is of irregular form. The main enclosing
wall has been much destroyed in places by the
modern field-wall on the N.E. and is also much
obliterated on the S.W. As a result it is impossible
definitely to identify the entrances, but there are
suggestions of one on the S.W. where there is an
unusually large orthostat. Internally there are suggestions of some circular huts and the usual cattle-pens
and enclosures.
Condition—Bad.
Settlement at Crosby Ravensworth
Howarcles, in the parish of Crosby Ravensworth
c(32). Ravens Gill, village settlement (850 ft. above
O.D.), on the E. side of Gilts Lane, 1½ m. S. of the
church, consists of a heterogeneous collection of banks,
small quarryings, etc. It is impossible to determine
which banks may have belonged to a settlement and
which may be spoil from the quarryings. The latter
have destroyed practically all definite traces of the
settlement, with the exception of an irregular ovalshaped enclosure with surrounding bank some 18 yards
by 20 yards in extent.
Condition—Bad.
c(33). Howarcles, village settlement (850 ft. above
O.D.), 800 yards N. of (32), is over 1¼ acres in extent.
The site occupies a shelf on the hill-side and is divided
by a road or passage-way, the part to the W. being
probably incomplete as now seen. The remains consist almost entirely of irregular enclosures with some
smaller ones which possibly represent cattle-pens.
Like some other settlements, such as that at Severals in
Crosby Garrett, there is a scarcity of circular huts.
There is one definite example at the N.W. corner;
there is also a very large circular foundation at the
N.E. corner, comparable to the large hut at Ewe
Close.
Prof. Collingwood suggests that this "may be a very
large family farm in which—except for the one outlying hut—everyone lived in the one large building."
On the other hand, Severals, which is larger, appears
also to be deficient in circular huts. Close to the
settlement on the S. are further enclosures which may
be of later date. (C. and W. Trans., N.S. XXXIII,
215.)
Condition—Poor.
b(34). Village Settlement (930 ft. above O.D.),
S. of Harberwain and ¾ m. W. of the church, consists
of slight indications of foundations. In the S. part is
a straight line of bank about 3½ ft. high which may be
of comparatively late date.
Condition—Bad.
b(35). Village Settlement (1,050 ft. above O.D.,
called Camp on O.S.), on Wickerslack Moor, nearly 1½ m.
W.N.W. of the church, is nearly 1 acre in extent. It consists of a number of circular huts and three irregular
enclosures on the E., while the western part is enclosed
by a nearly rectangular boundary wall. This becomes
indefinite on the N.E. but probably joined up with
the eastern portion.
There are two small irregular mounds of about
12 ft. diameter, one immediately S. of the S.W. angle
of the settlement and the other about 9 yards W. of
the same angle.
Condition—Bad.
Wickerslack Moor Settlement, Crosby Ravensworth parish.
c(36). Dykes and House-foundations at Crosby
Gill and Hazel Moor, 2 m. S.S.W. of the church. The
main dyke encloses a considerable area, the exact size of
which cannot be stated as most of the E. side cannot
be traced and there is no apparent return on the N.
As it exists, the length of the enclosure is at least 1¼
miles, and it is said to have been a deer park. The
large number of cross-dykes within the area, however,
seems to negative this suggestion. Its position with
a ravine running through it and its cross-dykes are
very similar to the dyked enclosure at Ravenstonedale.
The bank is about 14 ft. wide and the height from
3 to 3½ ft.
Within this enclosure are the foundations of a
number of rectangular buildings:—
(a) A two-roomed building (Plan, p. xlvi), immediately S. of (27), the larger room 30 ft. by 16 ft. and an
annexe 13 ft. square at the E. end. The room has a
three-sided W. end roughly segmental in form. The
walls, 3½ ft. thick, have orthostats. Prof. Collingwood (C. and W. Trans., N.S. XXXIII, 211) suggests
that this is the Scandinavian or Teutonic type of house.
(b) A two-roomed building, similar to and 100 yards
W. of (a), has a room 22 ft. by 14 ft. and an annexe
10 ft. by 13 ft.
(c and d) Remains of similar buildings, (c) 140 yards
S. of (b), and (d) 110 yards W.S.W. of (c).
(e) Rectangular building, ¾ m. S. of (d) and 200
yards W.N.W. of King's Well, is about 42 ft. by 10 ft.
(f) Rectangular building, 130 yards W.S.W. of (e),
is about 30 ft. by 13 ft.
Condition—Of dyke—fairly good.
c(37). Enclosure, 400 yards W.S.W. of (26), is of
roughly oval form, 42 ft. by 24 ft. The wall-foundations are visible and incorporate a large boulder.
Condition—Fairly good.
c(38). Circular Foundation or enclosure, 460
yards N.W. of Oddendale, is about 36 ft. in internal
diameter and has a slight sinking in the middle.
Condition—Poor.
b(39). Enclosure, in Scar Plantation, 2 m. W.N.W.
of the church, is of rhomboidal form, about 35 ft. by
27 ft. The foundations incorporate some large
boulders.
Condition—Poor.
d(40). Enclosure or building, on Crosby Ravensworth Fell, 3½ m. S.S.W. of the church and 320 yards
S. of Howenook Pike, is 20 ft. square with slightly
rounded angles.
Condition—Poor.
d(41). Cairn on Howenook Pike, 320 yards N. of
(40), is 20 ft. in diameter and 3½ ft. high.
c(42). Cairn on Long Scar Pike, over 3 m. S.W. of
the church, is about 60 ft. in diameter and 7 ft. high.
c(43). Mound (called Tumulus on O.S.), E. of
Wicker Street and ¾ m. W.S.W. of (27) is 36–38 ft.
in diameter and 3 ft. high. There has been some
disturbance in the middle.
c(44). Stone circle on White Hag, 400 yards
E.S.E. of (43), consists of eleven granite boulders, all
fallen.
c(45). Cairn (called Tumulus on O.S.), 320 yards
E.S.E. of (44), is of oval form, 32 ft. by 28 ft. and 4 ft.
high. It has been disturbed in the middle.
c(46). Mound of long-barrow form, 175 yards
S.S.W. of (27), is of piled stones partly turf-covered.
It is 87 ft. long and tapers from 49 ft. (at the E. end) to
25 ft. in width.
c(47). Cairn, 100 yards S. of (28), is of irregular
form, 21 ft. by 30 ft. and 1½ ft. high.
c(48). Cairn (called Tumulus on O.S.), ¼ m. S.E.
of (28), is about 63 ft. in diameter and 5½ ft. high.
e(49). Mounds (called Tumuli on O.S.), on the E.
bank of Ravens Gill opposite (18), are four in number:
(a) 150 yards N.N.E. of (18), oval in form and
34 ft. by 27 ft. and 4½ ft. high; (b) 55 yards S.S.E. of
(a), oval in form and 21 ft. by 24 ft. and 2½ ft. high;
(c) 40 yards S.E. of (b), oval in form and 32 ft. by
27 ft. and 3½ ft. high; (d) 24 yards S.W. of (c), circular, 24 ft. in diameter, and 2½ ft. high.
d(50). Robin Hood's Grave, cairn on the N. edge
of Crosby Ravensworth Fell, 2¾ m. S. of the church,
has been robbed of much of its stone.
f(51). Tumulus, at Penhurrock, 1,600 yards S.S.E.
of (18), has been largely removed and now consists
only of scattered stones and a few large boulders. It
was probably about 55 ft. in diameter, as indicated by
remains of a ring of stones round the base. It has
been excavated and burnt bones found. (C. and W.
Trans., O.S. VI, 179.)
e(52). Cairns (called Tumuli on O.S.) on Gaythorn
Plain, 2½ m. S.E. of the church, are two in number, the
more westerly 25 ft. in diameter and 2 ft. high, and the
second 100 yards W.N.W., 34 ft. in diameter and 3 ft.
high. Both were excavated by Greenwell and each
had a ring of stones round the base; the first had the
unburnt body of an adult and the second the scattered
bones of two males. At a level 1¾ ft. higher was a
secondary interment consisting of an urn (now in Brit.
Mus.) with the burnt remains of an adult. (Brit.
Barrows, Nos. CLXXX and CLXXXI.)
e(53). Mound (called Tumulus on O.S.) at Raise
Howe, 1½ m. S.E. of the church, is 45 ft. in diameter
and 3 ft. high. It has been badly damaged by excavation.
c(54). Cairn, N. of Potrigg and 2¼ m. S.W. of the
church, was about 17–18 ft. in diameter and 1½ ft.
high. About half of it has been removed.
c(55). Stone Circle (so marked on O.S.), 600 yards
S.S.W. of Oddendale, consists of a mound about 1 ft.
high with a small surrounding circle of stones and an
outer circle of 34 boulders, 90 ft. in diameter and 30 ft.
beyond the inner circle. It was excavated by Simpson
and burnt matter was found in the middle (C. and W.
Trans., O.S. VI, 178).
c(56). Cairns (one called Tumulus on O.S.), near
Seal Howe, are two in number. The first is 400
yards E.S.E. of (55) and is 35 ft. in diameter and 3 ft.
high; a bield has been built on the top. It was
excavated by Greenwell, who found a primary unburnt burial of a man on the rock surface and,
S. of it, a secondary burial consisting of an urn with
burnt remains of a woman and an infant (Brit. Barrows,
CLXXXII). The second cairn, 150 yards N.E. of the
first, is 30 ft. in diameter and 3½ ft. high.
c(57). Cairn, ¼ m. S. of Lane Head (15), is 20 ft.
in diameter and 2½ ft. high. It was excavated by
J. Moss, who found some small disc-shaped beads of
lignite or shale (now in Brit. Mus.), fragments of
pottery and unburnt bones (Proc. Soc. Ants., VII, 214).
b(58). Mounds (called Tumulus and Stone Circle on
O.S.), at Iron Hill, over 1½ m. W. of the church, are
two in number. The more northerly is 42–45 ft. in
diameter and 3 ft. high and has remains of a ring of
large boulders round the base. The second, 60 yards
to the S., is about 30 ft. in diameter and 1 ft. high, and
has a ring of large stones round the base. One of
these mounds has been excavated and found to contain the bones of a man, part of a deer-antler and
animal bones (Arch. Journ., XVIII (1861), 36).
b(59). Stone Circle, on the W. boundary of the
parish, 250 yards E.S.E. of Castlehowe Scar and over
2 m. W. of the church, consists of one fallen and ten
standing granite stones with a diameter of about 16 ft.
b(60). Mound, 40 yards W. of (35), is about 35 ft.
in diameter and 2 ft. high.
b(61). Mound (called Tumulus on O.S.), about 200
yards S.W. of (34), is about 40–42 ft. in diameter and
2 ft. high.
a(62). Mound (called Tumulus on O.S.) on the W.
side of Lyvennet Beck and 1¾ m. N. of the church, is
31–32 ft. in diameter and 3½ ft. high. There are
traces of a ring of boulders round the base, but the
mound has spread beyond them. The top has been
disturbed.
c(63). Mound, 230 yards N.W. of (32), is about 30 ft.
in diameter and 3 ft. high. The top has been disturbed
and two stones of a cist are visible.
c(64). Lynchets, 300 yards W. of (14) and 1¼ m.
W.S.W. of the church, on ground falling towards
the S.E.
c(65). Field System, on Dale Moor (1,100 ft. above
O.D.), 2 m. S.W. of the church, covers a considerable
area. There are traces of walled fields averaging about
an acre each and of roughly square form.