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Cairn on Glasscombe Ball is a scheduled monument situated in Devon. The site occupies 0.04 hectares and is protected by Historic England under reference number 1012470. It lies on bedrock formed from a felsic igneous intrusion of Permian age, part of the wider Carboniferous to Permian geological sequence that characterises parts of south-west England.
The cairn was constructed on the distinctive geology of Glasscombe Ball, where this acidic igneous rock would have been naturally exposed or readily available for gathering. Such upland locations were favoured for funerary and ceremonial monuments during the Bronze Age, commanding views across the surrounding landscape whilst being positioned on geologically distinctive terrain.
Like many cairns across Dartmoor and the Devon highlands, this monument represents an important survival of prehistoric stone construction. Its position on a named elevation indicates its builders deliberately selected a prominent location, possibly serving both as a burial marker and a landscape feature visible across considerable distances. The site's scheduled status reflects its archaeological and historical significance as evidence of early communities' land use and burial practices.
Cairn on Glasscombe Ball is a scheduled monument protected by Historic England under reference 1012470. View the official record →
Cairn on Glasscombe Ball is a scheduled monument situated in Devon. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Historic England (NHLE) under reference 1012470.
Cairn on Glasscombe Ball is a Scheduled Ancient Monument, legally protected by Historic England (NHLE) — the body responsible for designating and safeguarding heritage sites in England. The official designation reference is 1012470.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including One of a number of cairns at Black Pool (2.2 km), One of a number of cairns at Black Pool (2.2 km), Cairn near the summit of Western Beacon (2.6 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 15 strands of Cairn on Glasscombe Ball's history, each drawn from the record and mapped to the exact spot:
Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.
Cairn on Glasscombe Ball stands on Unnamed Igneous Intrusion, Carboniferous To Permian, bedrock that formed in the Permian. The rock here is felsic-rock.