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RISEHOW TOWER 25A

ALTERNATIVE NAME:

FOTHERGILL

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The buried remains of Risehow tower 25A, Fothergill, part of the Roman frontier defences along the Cumbrian coast, including the buried remains of a pre-Roman burial mound or barrow and an earl medieval grain drying kiln.

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NY 026 350 Risehow. Roman signal tower 26a, previously recorded as milefortlet 26. Excavated 1981 and 1982 (and previously 1969) by Bellhouse. Dimensions given as '6m each way' (presumably external, though not stated); with walls 0.96m wide on foundations 1.40m wide and 0.38m deep. Mortared sandstone and freestone construction. The remains of an adult inhumation with wide-mouthed jar, dated to before AD 120, had been disturbed by the construction of the tower, its covering mound dispersed. A pre-10th century corn drying kiln was constructed within the abandoned tower. Galena-roasting hearths found within the tower may be associated with it. (1)

Accelerated mass spectrometry (AMS) radiocarbon dating on part of the femur from the burial (CW2 84) gave results of 1330 +-60 BP (OxA-1818) and 1280 +-60 BP (OxA-1935). This gives a mean of 1305 +- 42, which when calibrated gave a date range from the mid seventh to the late eighth century AD. This surprising result probably reflects the contamination from the inserted corn-drying kiln. (2)

Revised schedule of coastal sites. (3)

The site of the tower was pointed out on the ground at NY 0267 3502 by the occupier of the nearby bungalow who was present during the excavations of 1981-2; this position was verified by the excavator, Mr R L Bellhouse (4a). The situation is on the summit of a ridge running NNE-SSW on the lip of an old cliff on the west, seaward side, and a less steep slope to the east. There is good visibility along the coast to the south and to Maryport to the north, and also to the west.
Between the known positions of milefortlet 23, established by air photo examination and geophysical survey, and this tower at NY 0267 3502, identified by Bellhouse as tower 26a, there is an accurately measured gap of 3474m. This area is occupied mainly by Maryport town and the industrial zone to the south of it; no trace of milefortlets or towers have ever been found here, and none are visible now. Bellhouse (authy 1) has suggested that the Roman fort at Maryport was in existence before or during the setting out of the frontier system, and that there was a 'dislocation' of the pattern of fortlets and towers at the fort. It is his belief that the series from the north ended at the north corner turret of the fort, and then the measured sequence resumed from the south corner going south. There is no evidence that is not circumstantial to support this. The distance between the elements of the frontier need not be exactly one third of a Roman mile as is clear elsewhere along the Cumberland Coast and on Hadrian's Wall itself. Nevertheless, if the distance of 3474m is divided by 7, the result is 496.29m, or some 1.64m more than the standard one third of a Roman mile (494.65m). It is proposed therefore to re-number the milefortlets/towers between MF23 and this tower excavated by Bellhouse. The following numbering sequence and positions are arrived at:-
MF23 NY 0445 3800 (proven position)
T23a NY 0420 3757
T23b NY 0395 3714
MF24 NY 0369 3672
T24a NY 0344 3629
T24b NY 0318 2587
MF25 NY 0292 3544
T25a NY 0267 3502 (proven position; this is the tower excavated by Bellhouse which he calls T26a)
Therefore this tower should be numbered T25a and not T26a. (4)

Part of this site is scheduled. (5)

Located on the English Heritage Map of Hadrian's Wall 2010. Situated at the western end of the frontier line. (6-7)

SOURCE TEXT

( 1) by R L Bellhouse 1984 Roman sites on the Cumberland coast: the new tower on Rise How

Transactions of the Cumberland and Westmorland Antiquarian & Archaeological SocietyNew series vol 1 (1901) - vol 100 (2000) 84 Page(s)41-59

( 2) Transactions of the Cumberland and Westmorland Antiquarian & Archaeological Society

'Rise How: An AMS date for the Iron Age Burial' in 'Notes' (R L Bellhouse) 91, 1991 Page(s)266-7

( 3) by R L Bellhouse 1989 Roman sites on the Cumberland coast : a new schedule of coastal sites

Cumberland and Westmorland Antiquarian and Archaeological Society research series1 (1979) - vol. 3

( 4) Field Investigators Comments

Keith Blood and Colin Lofthouse/02-MAR-1994/RCHME: Cumberland Coast Project.

( 4a) Oral information, correspondence (not archived) or staff comments

( 5) Scheduled Monument Notification

19/11/1996

(6) English Heritage 2010 An Archaeological Map of Hadrian's Wall, 1:25,000 scale

(7) N Hodgson 2009 Hadrian's Wall 1999-2009

'A summary of excavation an research for the 13th pilgrimage of Hadrian's Wall, 8-14 August 2009' Page(s)163-165

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