| Summary : Chysauster was a settlement mainly occupied between the second and third centuries AD. However, there is evidence for Iron Age settlement and earlier exploition of the landscape since at least the middle Bronze Age. It is situated on the Lands End peninsula one mile west of the hillfort of Castle-an-Dinas and reached by way of the St Ives to Penzance road. Chyauster has been excavated several times, including a dig by W. C. Borlase in 1873, and reconstruction work has been carried out on multiple occasions. The settlement consists of the remains of at least 10 courtyard houses (each circa 30 metres in diameter), a fogou (man-made underground chamber) and a surrounding field system. Eight of the round houses form two distinct rows. The houses each have the same kind of basic layout. This consists of an entrance leading into an open courtyard (circa 8 metres in diameter) from which branched out a number of rooms, usually three. There was a round room opposite the entrance, a long narrow room to the right of the entrance and, in some houses, an additional smaller round room. The fogou was situated 91 metres to the south of the houses and was originally recorded as running well over 16 metres in length but was blocked up in the late 20th century for safety reasons. Henry Crozier recorded it in around 1847 as a 'voe or sepulchral chamber'. The field system surrounding the settlement included terraces up to a metre in height, field banks and walls and trackways. A Bronze Age burial cairn was also found incorporated into a later field wall. These remains suffered considerable agricultural damage in the late 20th century. A second 'fogou', recorded in the mid 19th century, has been identified as a sunken approach road to the settlement. Finds from the site have included pottery, fragments of slate, water-worn pebbles of cream-coloured quartz and (in 2003) a copper alloy spoon, which may have been used for eating shellfish. The site is an English Heritage property. |
More information : [SW 47233502] Chysauster [NR] (Hut Clusters) [NR]
[SW 4720 3483] Cave [O.E.-on 68SW] (1)
The remains of an extensive Celtic village of Romano British period and possibly earlier, lie on the site commonly called Chysauster, which is on a gentle south-western slope between the farms of Chysauster [SW 472346] and Carnaquidden [SW 467350] (2-7)
Chysauster Ancient Village is scheduled as an ancient monument. (8)
A 25" survey of the settlement has been made, including the fogou at SW 4720 3483 (Ground photographs AO/60/295/5,6,7). An extensive system of associated fields and terraces surrounds and is centred on the village. To the west, south and east terraces are visible across modern fields although they have been much reduced by ploughing. To the north of the village in a moorland enclosure centred at SW 4723 3520 there are prominent contours following terraces up to 1 metre high and field banks and walls. (Ground photographs AO/60/295/8) (9)
No change from survey of 20.9.60.
See DOE Official Guide. (10)
Chysauster (NAT) Settlement (NR) (11-12)
SW 4725 3482. Approximate site of an underground passage listed by Russell as the second of two fogous which traditionally existed at Chysauster.
Blight mentions a second fogou and also shows a tunnel 180 yards long and 5 feet wide at the west of the settlement within 50 yards of house 4 which Hencken (6) considers to have been confused with a now obliterated sunken-way. The DOE Guide suggests that the surface indications in the area given by Russell possibly show the existing fogou remains forming
part of a larger structure.
SW 47043493. Probable courtyard house (13-14). (17). (13-17)
SW 47123485. Remains of structure, possible courtyard house (13-14) (17).
The Chysauster settlement appears to have been constructed during the Roman period and occupied for a relatively short time with little major rebuilding. The main area in guardianship contains 9 courtyard houses, only some of which have been excavated. The settlement is surrounded by extensive field system and trackways. As a result of threat from agricultural improvements, a detailed survey of the entire field system was undertaken in 1983/4, supplemented by sample excavation. This resulted in the discovery of a Bronze Age burial cairn (SW 43 NE 64) incorporated into a later field wall. (18)
Account of the destruction of the nearby moorland and the field system surrounding Chysauster. (19)
Brief account of survey of land adjoining Chysauster. (20-21)
Account of the discovery and recognition of the Chysauster settlement by Crozier, Blight and Borlase. Includes detailed bibliography of 19th century publications mentioning the site. (22)
SW 4720 3483. Site of Iron Age fogou situated within the well preserved and maintained Chysauster Iron Age/Roman unenclosed courtyard house settlement, 1 mile west of Castle-an-Dinas hillfort on the Lands End peninsula. Henry Crozier around 1847 recorded the structure as a voe or sepulchral chamber. Little is left of the fogou which is located 91 metres south of the main group of courtyard houses. The face of 1 roofing lintel 1.65 metres long is visible while the passageway beneath is infilled. The open approach trench to the passage has been backfilled and grassed over to make an upward sloping bank to the lower edge of the lintel. A few large stones from the top course of masonry forming the unroofed side walling still show above this bank. In 1982 the fogou still had 2 roofing stones in place and there were indications that it may have been 11 metres long and associated with another structure, possibly a courtyard house. (23)
SW 4725 3482. A second fogou was recorded by Henry Crozier at this location, which lies alongside a hedge on the north west edge of the site with 2 granite stiles spanning a stretch of sunken partially paved trackway. Hedges bordering this track are 2.1 metres high with large stones in the lower courses of walls which are corbelled slightly outwards. It is more likely however that this feature is in fact a sunken approach road to the settlement. (24)
Iron Age settlement situated on the Lands End peninsula 1 mile west of the hillfort of Castle-an-Dinas and reached by way of the St Ives to Penzance road. The settlement consists of the remains of 9 courtyard houses, 11 round houses and a fogou within the main body of the village and the surrounding field systems. A second fogou recorded in the mid 19th century has been identified as more likely to be a sunken approach road to the settlement. The remains of a Bronze Age burial cairn was also discovered on the site.
Chysauster was a Celtic settlement, that was mainly occupied between the second and third centuries AD. However there is evidence for Iron Age settlement and earlier exploition of the landscape since at least the middle Bronze Age (see associated records). Chyauster has been excavated several times, including a dig by Borlase in 1873, and reconstruction work has been carried out on several occasions. The settlement consists of the remains of at least 10 courtyard houses (each circa 30 metres in diameter), a fogou (man-made underground chamber) and a surrounding field system. Eight of the round houses form two distinct rows. The buildings each have the same kind of basic layout. This consists of an entrance leading into an open courtyard (circa 8 metres in diameter) from which fanned out a number of rooms, usually three. There was a round room opposite the entrance, a long narrow room to the right of the entrance and, in some houses, an additional smaller round room. The fogou was situated to the south of the houses and was originally recorded as running for at least 50 metres but was blocked up in the late 20th century for safety reasons. The remains of the field system suffered considerable agricultural damage in the late 20th century. Finds from the site have included pottery, fragments of slate, water-worn pebbles of cream-coloured quartz and (in 2003) a copper alloy spoon, which may have been used for eating shellfish. (25-29)
A watching brief was carried out in 2003 during groundworks to improve disabled access along the footpath to Chysauster Settlement. Three sites were observed, Site B produced a possible prehistoric decorated stone which, if accepted as such, would be a rare example of rock art in Cornwall. Site C produced post holes, an old land surface and a Roman spoon of the Cochlear type. (30)
A Level 3 analytical earthwork survey of Chysauster Ancient Village, Gulval, near Penzance, Cornwall was undertaken by Historic England on behalf of the English Heritage Trust in late January and early February 2016. The survey recorded a number of earthwork features predominantly of Iron Age and Romano-British date associated with the fogou and courtyard house settlement. Features included:a possible enclosure associated with the fogou; a series of lynchets of probable Iron Age date underlying the core of the courtyard house settlement; and a field system associated with the Romano-British courtyard house settlement. Evidence of postmedieval tin prospection, quarrying and agricultural improvement was also recorded, as were spoil heaps from twentieth century archaeological excavations. (31)
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