Scratchbury Camp
Iron Age hillfort in Wiltshire, England / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Dear Wikiwand AI, let's keep it short by simply answering these key questions:
Can you list the top facts and stats about Scratchbury Camp?
Summarize this article for a 10 year old
Scratchbury Camp is the site of an Iron Age univallate hillfort on Scratchbury Hill, overlooking the Wylye valley about 1 km northeast of the village of Norton Bavant in Wiltshire, England. The fort covers an area of 37 acres (15 ha)[1] and occupies the summit of the hill on the edge of Salisbury Plain, with its four-sided shape largely following the natural contours of the hill.
Location | Wiltshire |
---|---|
Region | Southern England |
Coordinates | 51.1973°N 2.1274°W / 51.1973; -2.1274 |
Type | Univallate hillfort |
Area | 37 acres (15 ha) |
History | |
Material | Chalk |
Periods | Bronze Age, Iron Age |
Associated with | Belgae |
Site notes | |
Excavation dates | 1810, 1930, 1957, 1991[1] |
Archaeologists | E.C.Curwen W.F.Grimes William Cunnington Sir Richard Colt Hoare[1] |
Condition | good |
Public access | footpaths |
Official name | Scratchbury Hill Monuments |
Identifiers | |
NHLE | 1010213 |
The Iron Age hillfort dates to around 100 BC, but contains the remains of an earlier and smaller D-shaped enclosure or camp. The age of this earlier earthwork is currently subject to debate, and has been variously interpreted due to the inconclusive and incomplete nature of previous and differing excavation records; it may be early Iron Age dating to around 250 BC, but it has also been interpreted as being Bronze Age, dating to around 2000 BC.[2][3]
There are seven tumuli located within the enclosure of the fort, which were excavated in the 19th century by Sir Richard Colt Hoare and William Cunnington. Finds from excavations at that time included relics of bone, pottery, flint, brass, and amber jewellery, most of which can be seen today at the Wiltshire Museum in Devizes.[4] Other items of interest have been found in and around the site including Roman artefacts[5] and neolithic flint and jade axe heads.[5]
The site is listed on Wiltshire Council's Sites and Monuments Record with number ST94SW200, and is also a scheduled monument number SM10213.[6][7] The hillfort falls within a biological Site of Special Scientific Interest, designated as Scratchbury & Cotley Hills SSSI, which encompasses a total of 53.5 hectares (132 acres), being first SSSI notified in 1951.[8]