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Week Orchard

In the civil parish of Week St Mary.
In the historic county of Cornwall.
Modern Authority of Cornwall.
1974 county of Cornwall.
Medieval County of Cornwall.

OS Map Grid Reference: SS23460035
Latitude 50.77610° Longitude -4.50489°

Week Orchard has been described as a Timber Castle although is doubtful that it was such.

There are cropmark/slight earthwork remains.

Description

Week Orchard settlement earthworks up to 0.5m high appear to overlie an irregular mound circa 30m east to west by 25m and up to 1.5m high. The possible remains of a motte. (PastScape–ref. Field Investigators Comments–Herring PC, 14-MAY-93, CAU Field Investigation).

Week Orchard being an important Domesday settlement (PastScape–ref. CAU Place-names Index, Week St Mary).
Comments

Now a small hamlet but, as settlement is often dispersed in Cornwall, could still have been a sub-manorial centre, although the parochial centre is Week St Mary, where a castle exists. The field investigator recommended an earthwork and geophysical survey and pending this, which may never actually happen. The location, air photo and given description suggests this is unlikely to have been anything other than a farmstead. A similar dubious earthwork at Woolston, a mile north, was also described as a possible motte by the same field investigator at the same time.
Links to archaeological and architectural databases, mapping and other online resources

Data >
PastScape   County HER            
Maps >
Streetmap   NLS maps   Where's the path   Old-Maps      
Data/Maps > 
Magic   V. O. B.   Geology   LiDAR   Open Domesday  
Air Photos > 
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Photos >
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Sources of information, references and further reading
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This record last updated 26/07/2017 09:22:04

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