2018

TL6162 : Devil's Dyke

taken 5 years ago, 3 km from Newmarket, Suffolk, England

This is 1 of 2 images, with title Devil's Dyke in this square
Devil's Dyke
Devil's Dyke
Devil's Dyke, Cambridgeshire :: TL5864

The Devil's Dyke is one of the best preserved Anglo-Saxon earthworks of its kind in the country dating from the 5th or 6th century AD. It consists of a 7.5 miles (12.1 km) long bank and ditch running in a south-east direction from the village of Reach to Woodditton. When it was created, it sealed a narrow land corridor between the southern edge the then undrained and water-logged fenland in the north-west, and dense woodlands in the south, so making circumvention difficult and forming an effective barrier. The dyke crossed three important Roman roads, including the ancient Icknield Way, and may thus have served as a way of controlling trade and movement in and out of the area.

It was probably built by the East Anglians against their Mercian neighbours. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle and other sources record the frequently tense relations between the two kingdoms, and it is likely that this provoked the need to strengthen the border and control access.

It is a Scheduled Ancient Monument (SAM). It also contains chalk grassland of international importance and has been designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and part is a Special Area of Conservation (SAC).

Try Archive LinkExternal link for more information.

Scheduled Monuments

In the United Kingdom, a scheduled monument is a 'nationally important' archaeological site or historic building, given protection against unauthorised change.
There are about 20,000 scheduled monuments in England representing about 37,000 heritage assets. Of the tens of thousands of scheduled monuments in the UK, most are inconspicuous archaeological sites, but some are large ruins.
Wikipedia: LinkExternal link


Creative Commons Licence [Some Rights Reserved]   © Copyright N Chadwick and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence.
Geographical Context: Historic sites and artefacts Paths
This photo is linked from: Automatic Clusters: · Devils [3] · Devil's Dyke [2] Title Clusters: · Devil's Dyke [2] ·
1:50,000 Modern Day Landranger(TM) Map © Crown Copyright
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Grid Square
TL6162, 9 images   (more nearby 🔍)
Photographer
N Chadwick   (more nearby)
Date Taken
Saturday, 27 October, 2018   (more nearby)
Submitted
Tuesday, 29 January, 2019
Subject Location
OSGB36: geotagged! TL 6117 6207 [10m precision]
WGS84: 52:13.9943N 0:21.5189E
Camera Location
OSGB36: geotagged! TL 6119 6206
View Direction
West-northwest (about 292 degrees)
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Image Type (about): geograph  (Third Visitor for TL6162) · First in 5 Years (TPoint) (about)
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