Ivinghoe Beacon

The hill is an ancient signal point, which was used in times of crisis to send messages across long distances. It is also the site of an early Iron Age hillfort protected as a scheduled monument. Archaeological evidence has revealed human activity dating back to the Bronze Age, and the area contains many other scheduled Monuments, including a number of Bronze Age burial mounds and the faint remains of an Iron Age hillfort at the top of the hill. There also exists evidence of ancient farming as the Beacon is also crossed by deep channels which are thought to be cattle drovers' paths and cross-ridge dykes. The prehistoric earthwork, Grim's Ditch passes to the south of the Beacon at Incombe…