More information : (SX 10355483) Castle Dore (AT) (1)
Castle Dore consists of two roughly circular banks, the inner one
accompanied by a ditch, which are contiguous on the W. and which
gradually diverge towards the E. where an outer enclosure covers the
entrance. There are traces of a ditch around the outer rampart.
Excavations in 1936 and 1937 by C.A. Raleigh-Radford showed the
earthworks to have originally formed a multivallate I.A. 'A'
hillfort. This was later modified to a typical work of IA 'B' type
by the raising of the inner bank and the addition of an inturned
entrance. Some twenty I.A. huts were located in the interior.
The earthwork was not occupied in the Roman period.
The excavations revealed indications of a Dark Age 'royal palace'
consisting of a hall and associated buildings probably dating from
the period between the 5th and the 8th centuries.
The finds included much I.A. pottery of a type similar to Glastonbury
ware, a few abraded Dark Age sherds and various objects of metal,
glass and stone. (2)
Castle Dore is an I.A. hill-fort as described.
The entrance on the E. is now simple with no visible evidence of
inturning. Other gaps in the outer rampart are modern.
Although the surface of the interior has been broken by ploughing
there are no indications of former occupation.
Resurveyed at 1/2500 by Air Ground Method. (3)
Deep ploughing at Castle Dore has removed the upper levels, and
dating evidence for secondary usage is unsatisfactory; a post-Roman
date depending upon a yellow bead, which is not closely dateable,
and two sherds of possible sub-Roman pottery.
Rahtz points out that the relevant phase at Castle Dore is
different in character from the Iron Age phase, with evidence
of a considerable time lapse between the two.
The total lack of Roman artefacts suggests a post-Roman date, and the
substantial post-holes offer evidence of considerable building on
the site. Radford's suggestion of a 'Palace' complex is queried by
Laing(a) however, who observes that the irregularity of the post-hole
alignments makes their interpretation a personal view. The site has
been identified with Lancien, the palace of King Mark, a name which
survives in that of a farm Lantyne or Lantian, two miles away. An
ascription to the 6th century gains some support from the nearby
memorial to Drustaus (SX 15 SW 7), and the district is associated
with the romance of Tristan and Iseult. (4-6)
Reinterpretation of the original excavation material has changed the chrononlogical framework of the site. The initial construction of the hillfort has been given an earlier date of 5th-4th century BC. This is based on ceramic evidence and allows more scope within the structural phases and alterations. The earliest phase is a bivallate hillfort with a campart of glacis construction. The ceramic assemblage of this phase is of the Glastonbury type and related Radford's 2nd century to the 3-4th century. A later phase follows a period of disuse and has a gate passage type entrance. Within the interior a number of 4 and 6 poster structures are present, these were originally interpreted as 2 rectangular aisled buildings. The post holes may also represent ploughed out stake built round houses. These interpretations and suggestions allow for a more complex building sequence in the later phases with frequent replacements of structures over a long period. Two oval structures may represent an element of Romano-British or later occupation. The small quantity of pottery from this period indicate occupation ceased before the start of the Roman period. The pottery assemblage is typical of a Cornish pre Roman Iron Age Site. (7)
Two glass bracelets recovered during the original excavations can be dated from the mid 3rd to the later 2nd centuries BC. Both are thought to be imports of middle La Tene dates. (8)
The site is included on the distribution map of Iron Age and Romano-British sites of Cornwall. (9)
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