(Centred NY 64739508) Camp Gibbie's Knowe. (1)

Situated about 150 yards from the river Kielder, on a slope falling steeply on the north, and gradually on the west, is Gibbe's or Gilbert's Knowe, an earthwork in the form of an irregular oval
measuring 90 x 65 yards. There appears to have been no surrounding ditch, but on the south side of the earthwork are some heaps of stones which may indicate the site of dwellings.
About 180 yards south east of the earthwork are some foundations. At this spot, an artificial cutting seems to have been made to conduct water, and may possibly have also served as a protective ditch. The entrance was on the highest part of the entrenchment, and there is a stone foundation possibly of a dwelling. On the east side of the entrance. A possibly later wall runs across the earthwork from north to south. 'This camp is about 100 paces in diameter, but not quite a regular circle; it is composed of large rude stones.' A burn on its west side seems to have served as a protective ditch, while this same burn seems to have been led to form a smaller ditch on the east. The ruins of three buildings are to be seen !between the agger and the top of the bank'. (a)(2)

Type B2 (Under Prehistoric Section - Forts on High Ground). (3)

Gibbie's Knowe: single-bank irregular earthwork (approx 1 1/4 acres in area). (4)

Listed as pre-Roman Iron Age univallate (Forts, settlements and enclosures). (5)

Gibbie's Knowe now falls within Kielder Forest, property of the Commission. The earthwork survives under a thick heather cover as an outward facing scarp approximately 2m high, but is apparent that the enclosing feature was originally a substantial earth and rubble bank some 3m-4m wide. This is consistent with the local type of non-defensive Iron Age enclosure, as are the proportions and the general aspect of the work.
No internal remains are now visible and the outlying foundations noted by MacLauchlan, which could not be located, have presumably been destroyed by the afforestation. Sketch survey at 1:2500. (6)

The enclosure at Gibbie's Knowe measures 78m north east/south west by 66m transversely between the centres of a collapsed turf-covered stone-faced rubble wall with an average width of 3-4m and a maximum height of 2.2m. Two entrances are apparent, the largest in the east side being 8m wide and the other in the south 3m wide, which is flanked by large boulders. South of the large entrance a wall 25m in length has been robbed and spread and was probably misinterpreted by authority 2 as the !ruins of three buildings!. N of this entrance and built on to the outside of the enclosure wall are the remains of a later, poorly defined sub-divided rectangular stone founded building measuring 15m x 4m and it is possible that the adjacent entrance may have been robbed and enlarged during its construction. There are no traces of occupation, the only internal remains being those of the later field wall mentioned by authority 2.
No trace of the outlying foundations or ditch referred to by authority 2 could be located, any remains presumably having been destroyed by the afforestation.
The proportions and general appearance of the remains are consistent with the local type of non-defensive Iron Age settlement enclosure. See GP and 1:2500 illustration.
Surveyed at 1:10,000. (7)

No change. (8)

Scheduled. (9)

Surveyed at 1:500 by RCHME in September 1998. The prehistoric enclosure measures about 75m ENE to WSW by 65m transversely, enclosing an area of some 0.28ha. The western arc of the rampart shows evidence of a built wall face along a length of wall 1.7m long by 0.8m high. The earthwork has been robbed and mutilated in places, probably for the construction of a later building and field banks. There are three 'holes' in the west side of the rampart which are interpreted as probable investigations of unknown date. The dense vegetation in the interior obscures any internal features which might survive.
The later building, on the east side of the enclosure, measures about 14m north-south by 3m transversely, within a bank up to 0.5m high and spread to about 1.5m wide. The interior seems to have been divided into three rooms. There is no apparent entrance. It is interpreted as a medieval or later farmhouse associated with the field banks and a small enclosure.
Although the enclosure lies within Kielder Forest, there is no evidence that the earthworks has ever been planted and it survives in a clearing surrounded by mature conifers, planted in 1950. The earthwork was surveyed at 1:500 scale by RCHME: York as a part of the Kielder Scheduled Ancient Monuments (SAMs) Project. The original plan and a full report is lodged in NMR Swindon.(10)

Additional Reference (11)