MMO2603 - Post-medieval ponds southeast of East Harwood Farm (Monument)

The remains of two quarries are visible on aerial photographs as earthwork pits roughly 100 metres to southeast of East Harwood Farm, at circa SS 9357 4095 and SS 9358 4089. The pits are subrectangular in plan and roughly 20 metres long, aligned along the contours of the hill. The earthworks are marked on the 1st Edition Ordnance Survey map of 1889, and therefore predate its publications. They may also be cut by, and therefore predate, the gutters of a water meadow of probable mid 19th Century date. On the 1st Edition Ordnance Survey map they are depicted as being very regular in shape and possibly terraced into the combe slope, which may indicate a particular purpose. However, on the basis of the aerial photographs alone, this remains unclear. An old lime kiln is recorded approximately 400 metres to the east of these pits, but an association seems unlikely. [1-3] The features are shown in two areas of scrub on the 2020 MasterMap data. [4] This record was enhanced as part of the National Record of the Historic Environment to Exmoor National Park Historic Environment Record data transfer project. [5] Coloured versions of the 1st Edition Ordnance Survey map show these features coloured blue indicating that they are ponds at this time. They may be an integral part of the water meadow system [2, 6]