Dundon Hill Hillfort is an Iron Age hillfort in Compton Dundon, Somerset, England. It has been designated as a Scheduled Ancient Monument.[2] South east of the site is a Bronze Age bowl barrow which, it has been suggested, was later modified as a Norman Motte, known as Dundon Beacon.[3]

Dundon Hill Hillfort
Plan of the site
LocationCompton Dundon, Somerset, England
Coordinates51°05′13″N 2°44′13″W / 51.08694°N 2.73694°W / 51.08694; -2.73694
BuiltIron Age
Designated1996[1]
Reference no.22076[2]
Dundon Hill Hillfort is located in Somerset
Dundon Hill Hillfort
Location of Dundon Hill Hillfort in Somerset

The 5 hectares (12 acres) site is guarded by a single bank ranging from 0.5 metres (1.6 ft) to 2.5 metres (8.2 ft) high, however parts of the site have been damaged by quarrying.[2] Flint flakes, Bronze Age pottery, and Iron Age pottery have also been found, which are now in the Museum of Somerset.[1]

Dundon Hill, also sometimes called Dundon Beacon, stands out prominently in the flat country of King's Sedgemoor, rising to a height of 270 feet. One writer on ancient earthworks notes that it "looks like a respectable mountain and is in fact a natural island fortress". The whole of the hilltop is enclosed by the single bank of stones and earth.[4]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b "Dundon Hill". Pastscape. English Heritage. Archived from the original on 25 March 2012. Retrieved 2 February 2011.
  2. ^ a b c "Dundon Hillfort, Compton Dundon". Historic Environment Record. Somerset County Council. Retrieved 27 December 2010.
  3. ^ "Dundon Beacon". Pastscape. English Heritage. Archived from the original on 25 March 2012. Retrieved 2 February 2011.
  4. ^ Edward J. Burrow, Ancient earthworks & camps of Somerset (1924), p. 84