Site of Special Scientific Interest | |
Location | Norfolk |
---|---|
Grid reference | TF 943 408[1] |
Interest | Biological |
Area | 5.1 hectares (13 acres)[1] |
Notification | 1984[1] |
Location map | Magic Map |
Warham Camp is an Iron Age circular hill fort with a total diameter of 212 metres (232 yards) near Warham, south of Wells-next-the-Sea in Norfolk. It is a scheduled monument[2] dated to between 800BC and 43AD,[3] and a 5.1-hectare (13-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest,[1][4] located within the Norfolk Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.[5] The University of East Anglia has described it as the best-preserved hill fort in Norfolk.[6][7]
First built by the Iceni people centuries before the Roman conquest of Britain, the monument later housed a Roman blacksmith. A section of its bank was partially destroyed in the 18th century rerouting of the River Stiffkey. It has now been the subject of archaeological excavations spanning 90 years.[7]
This unimproved chalk grassland site is heavily grazed by rabbits and cattle. It has diverse herb species such as common rock-rose and squinancywort, and butterflies including the chalkhill blue.[8]