Scheduled MonumentsEnglandPilsdon Pen hillfort and associated remains

Pilsdon Pen hillfort and associated remains

England
List entry 1019394
Nation
England
The designation
Reference
List entry 1019394
Authority
Historic England (NHLE)
Status
Scheduled Monument
Scheduled area
9.79 hectares
Grid reference
ST 41275 01290
Boundary

Scheduled area

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

Overview

History & significance

Pilsdon Pen is a univallate Iron Age hillfort located in west Dorset near the village of Pilsdon. The site comprises a single defensive ditch and bank enclosing approximately 1.8 hectares on a prominent hilltop at some 277 metres elevation, with evidence of internal occupation features including postholes and storage pits. Archaeological investigation and surface survey have confirmed Iron Age date and use, though the precise chronology within the Iron Age remains to be fully established. The hillfort's strategic position on high ground within the broader landscape of Dorset's fortified settlements reflects the defensive and possibly territorial significance of the site during the pre-Roman Iron Age period.

Pilsdon Pen hillfort and associated remains is a scheduled monument protected by Historic England under reference 1019394. View the official record →

About this monument

Questions & answers

What is Pilsdon Pen hillfort and associated remains?

Pilsdon Pen is a univallate Iron Age hillfort located in west Dorset near the village of Pilsdon. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Historic England (NHLE) under reference 1019394.

Who is responsible for protecting Pilsdon Pen hillfort and associated remains?

Pilsdon Pen hillfort and associated remains 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 1019394.

What other scheduled monuments are near Pilsdon Pen hillfort and associated remains?

Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Lewesdon hillfort, 525m north east of Brimbley Coombe Farm (2.5 km), Marshwood Castle (3.7 km), Lambert's Castle: an Iron Age hillfort 425m west of Nash Farm, with a bowl barrow, and the sites of a post-medieval fair and a telegraph station (4.8 km).

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Everything a full report reveals about Pilsdon Pen hillfort and associated remains

This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 15 strands of Pilsdon Pen hillfort and associated remains'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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The ground beneath

The bedrock under Pilsdon Pen hillfort and associated remains

Pilsdon Pen hillfort and associated remains stands on Gault Formation And Upper Greensand Formation (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Cenomanian. The rock here is mudstone, sandstone and limestone.