Scheduled Monuments›England›Cross dyke and linear boundary on Melbury Hill and Compton Down

Cross dyke and linear boundary on Melbury Hill and Compton Down

England
List entry 1016894
Nation
England
The designation
Reference
List entry 1016894
Authority
Historic England (NHLE)
Status
Scheduled Monument
Scheduled area
3.46 hectares
Grid reference
ST 87797 19730
Boundary

Scheduled area

© Mapbox · © OpenStreetMap contributors · Boundary data © Historic England (NHLE)

Overview

History & significance

Cross dyke and linear boundary on Melbury Hill and Compton Down is a prehistoric linear earthwork situated in Dorset. The monument comprises a substantial dyke system that served as a territorial or defensive boundary across the chalk downland landscape. The earthwork is believed to date to the Bronze Age or Iron Age, periods when such linear boundaries were commonly constructed across southern English chalk uplands to demarcate land or control movement. The surviving physical remains consist of a linear ditch and bank formation that remains clearly visible in the modern topography of the site.

Cross dyke and linear boundary on Melbury Hill and Compton Down is a scheduled monument protected by Historic England under reference 1016894. View the official record →

About this monument

Questions & answers

What is Cross dyke and linear boundary on Melbury Hill and Compton Down?

Cross dyke and linear boundary on Melbury Hill and Compton Down is a prehistoric linear earthwork situated in Dorset. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Historic England (NHLE) under reference 1016894.

Who is responsible for protecting Cross dyke and linear boundary on Melbury Hill and Compton Down?

Cross dyke and linear boundary on Melbury Hill and Compton Down 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 1016894.

What other scheduled monuments are near Cross dyke and linear boundary on Melbury Hill and Compton Down?

Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Causewayed camp on Hambledon Hill (7.9 km), Roman villa on Little Barton Hill (9.2 km), Two bowl barrows in Hinton Bushes 850m north of Pimperne Long Barrow (9.2 km).

Unlimited access

Everything a full report reveals about Cross dyke and linear boundary on Melbury Hill and Compton Down

This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 15 strands of Cross dyke and linear boundary on Melbury Hill and Compton Down's history, each drawn from the record and mapped to the exact spot:

Overview
An interactive map of the location with every monument and battle plotted, and a plain-language history built only from what the record holds.
Monuments
The legally protected scheduled monuments around the location, each with its period, type and significance.
Battlefields
The battles and sieges fought on this ground, mapped and set on a timeline of the wider conflict.
Roman Britain
The Roman roads, forts and towns near here, and the Iron Age people who held the land before Rome arrived.
Domesday
The settlement's entry in the 1086 Domesday Book: who held it, what it was worth, and the people who worked the land.
Civil War
The Civil War fighting, garrisons and recorded militaria in this area, woven into the arc of 1642 to 1651.
Geology
The bedrock beneath the site, its age and rock type, reaching back hundreds of millions of years.
LiDAR
Laser-scanned terrain that reveals earthworks hidden under fields and woodland, with likely features flagged.
Local Names
What the street and field names around here actually mean, and the history buried inside them.
Historical Maps
Ordnance Survey maps from the 1800s, layered over the location as it stands today.
Literature
The books, county histories, charters and archives that mention this place, quoted with their sources.
Legal
The protected sites nearby and the metal-detecting, access and treasure laws that apply to this ground.
Spotlight
A deep dive into the most remarkable, lesser-known history of the place, traced back to the record.
Target Zones
For detectorists: the most promising ground to search nearby, ranked by confidence, with what to expect.
Timeline
The whole story of the location told era by era, from prehistory to the present day.
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Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.

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Nearby

Other scheduled monuments within 10 km

Causewayed camp on Hambledon Hill
7.9 km
Roman villa on Little Barton Hill
9.2 km
Two bowl barrows in Hinton Bushes 850m north of Pimperne Long Barrow
9.2 km
Hod Hill camp and Lydsbury Rings
9.3 km
Two bowl barrows in Hinton Bushes 810m north of Pimperne Long Barrow
9.3 km
Moated site 130m west of Bere Marsh Farm
9.4 km
Lazerton Farm causewayed road
9.5 km
Two Late Iron Age or Romano-British enclosed settlements with part of an associated field system 420m NNW of South Farm
9.6 km
The ground beneath

The bedrock under Cross dyke and linear boundary on Melbury Hill and Compton Down

Cross dyke and linear boundary on Melbury Hill and Compton Down stands on Grey Chalk Subgroup, bedrock that formed in the Cenomanian. The rock here is chalk.

The wider landscape

Around Cross dyke and linear boundary on Melbury Hill and Compton Down

Cadbury CastleArchaeological site · ~15.7 milesOld SarumArchaeological site · ~17.9 milesStonehengeArchaeological site · ~20.6 milesDorchesterRoman town · ~21.4 milesSiege of Maiden CastleBattle (43) · ~23.3 miles
Domesday entry for Melbury, Dorset →
All Scheduled Monuments