(Name NY91029075) Camps. (1)

Hut circles 'a' 'b' 'c' Lynchets at 'd'. (2)

Enclosures and Hut Circles. (3)

The Butts (Birkys Gill) Rectangular single ramparted earthwork and village, approx 1/2 acre, at 55 12' 40" N Lat; 2 08' 30" W Long. (4)

Monkridge (Birkys Gill) (three camps) Type C (rectangular enclosures usually associated with Roman occupation). (5)

Remains of two earthworks are situated either side of a little stream upon a north-west slope of moorland pasture and heather, at approx 650 feet above sea-level. The sites overlook the valley of the River Rede to the north west and south-west.
'A' NY 90939072. Situated on the south-west side of the stream which flows down a steep sided ravine, the earthwork is an irregular-shaped enclosure bounded by banks of earth and stone. It is scooped into the hillside along the south-east side, and is subdivided into two compartments by a set of banks forming two little enclosures, one nearly square, the other oval-shaped, and containing a hut circle of 7m diameter with an entrance in the south side.
The principal entrance to the enclosure is in the south corner. The sides are revetted with stones. A smaller entrance leads to the north-western compartment through the north-east side. The earthwork appears to have been a Homestead for a family and their stock.
'B' NY 91039074. Situated north-east of 'A' across the stream, the site consists of an irregular-shaped enclosure bounded by a bank of earth and stones, now very fragmentary and mutilated. Set in the ban, blister-fashion, are six hut circles, of diameters from 4m to 6.5m. Their entrances face the interior. A seventh hut circle of 6.5m lies outside the enclosure on the north-east side. To the south, is a little enclosure with a hut circle at each end, of 4m and 5m diameter, respectively. Two depressions in the ground to the south-east may denote sites of two more hut circles. From the north side of the site, a hollow way leads down the slopes towards the valley bottom, it is 2m wide with a maximum depth of 1m (Authority 2 refers to lynchets at d).
Around the east side of the site is a line of stones, remains of a bank, which runs from the large hut circle on the north-east side of the large enclosure, to a boggy tract, south of the site. It probably bounded a stock enclosure, with the banks of the stream forming the south-west side.
Another line of stones runs down the slopes from the north-west corner of the site to the stream bounding the enclosure on the north-west side.
The site appears to be remains of a Homestead Settlement for several families with their stock. (6)

Listed under Romano-British enclosed stone-built settlements. (7)

'A' is a fair example of the enclosed type of homestead, while 'B' is more an agglomeration of huts. Both, however, represent minor native settlement.
Published survey (25 inch) revised, and resurveyed at 1:2500 respectively. (8)

'A' - NY 90939073. 'B' - NY 91039074. Two Romano-British settlements mainly as described by authority 6.
They are connected by a wall running from the south-east corner of 'A' to the north west of 'B'.
Fragmentary remains of a probably contemporary field system mainly to the south and north east are visible as lynchets, low turf-covered boulder walls, bank and an occasional stone clearance heap, all partly obscured by heavy peat and grass covered. One large field edged by the remains of a boulder wall is centred at NY 909906 and measures about 150m by 80m. An addition to the well preserved sunken way (8m average width) mentioned there are several more less well defined especially to the north west though some of these may be later. The system extends down the slopes to the north west but is now overlaid here by rig and furrow.
'A' and 'B' surveyed at 1:10,000. (9)

NY 910907: Romano-British settlements and field system at The Butts was surveyed at 1:1250. (10)

Scheduled area extended 29-Aug-86. (11)

Butts, East and West, North Tyne rectilinear site. (12)

NY 910906. The Butts, field system associated with native settlement of Roman period. Photographed from the air in 1981. (13)(14)

NY 910906. The Butts enclosed stone-built settlement with contemporary cord rig field(s)/field system. (15)

The cord rig was not visible during a walkover survey in summer 2018, owing to the high vegetation growth at the time. (16)

NY 9096 9075. Settlement on NW slope of Wether Hill. Scheduled No ND/466. (17a)

General association with HER 9731. (17)

The north-east part of this complex appears from lidar imagery to include a large embanked enclosure on the north-east side of Bog Sike; this is atypical of such settlements and could be significantly older, though its appearance is confused by the reuse of part of it as a track. Its location adjacent to the possible cairns to the south may be significant. The hut circles and enclosure of the Roman-period settlement (at the given NGR) are clearly visible on lidar imagery to the south of this large enclosure. This whole complex should be studied in detail; it might just turn out to have more time-depth than previously recognised. (18)