Bridestones Moor: The Burden of an Ancient Earthwork

A return to Bridestones Moor for the annual task of clearing the Scheduled Ancient Monument — the prehistoric dyke — of bracken and self-seeded saplings. Without this, roots and undergrowth would soon begin to damage what little remains of it.

The dyke, a double bank and ditch nearly a kilometre long, is thought to date from the Late Bronze Age or Early Iron Age. It once marked the edge between National Trust land and the Forestry Commission. The Commission, in what passes for generosity, handed over a strip of land about ten metres wide. The whole thing is now the Trust’s problem. And so, out come the slashers and loppers.

As for what it was, current theories point to it as a territorial boundary. Perhaps it divided land between groups, enhancing natural features like rivers and ridgelines, or helped with moving livestock. It may even have been defensive, topped with a wooden fence. Dykes like this are not unusual in the Tabular Hills¹‘Prehistoric Linear Boundary and Associated Features Centred 500m North East of High Bride Stones, Allerston – 1021099 | Historic England’. 2024. Historicengland.org.uk &lt;<a href=”https://historicengland.org.uk/listing/the-list/list-entry/1021099?section=official-list-entry” target=”_blank” rel=”noopener”>https://historicengland.org.uk/listing/the-list/list-entry/1021099?section=official-list-entry</a>&gt; [accessed 1 February 2024].

They were not small projects. Their size and layout make it clear they were not built in a hurry, nor by a handful of individuals. They took years. They needed cooperation, effort, and probably some kind of obligation — not far from a form of taxation. Whether symbolic or practical, these were statements of control over land, made to be seen and remembered. The people who built them meant to be noticed.

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  ‘Prehistoric Linear Boundary and Associated Features Centred 500m North East of High Bride Stones, Allerston – 1021099 | Historic England’. 2024. Historicengland.org.uk &lt;<a href=”https://historicengland.org.uk/listing/the-list/list-entry/1021099?section=official-list-entry” target=”_blank” rel=”noopener”>https://historicengland.org.uk/listing/the-list/list-entry/1021099?section=official-list-entry</a>&gt; [accessed 1 February 2024]