Reasons for Designation
Square barrows are funerary monuments of the Middle Iron Age, most examples dating from the period between c.500 BC and c.50 BC. Around 200 square barrow cemeteries have been recorded. Square barrows were constructed as earthen mounds surrounded by a ditch and covering one or more bodies. The main burial is normally central and carefully placed in a rectangular or oval grave pit, although burials placed on the ground surface below the mound are also known. Ploughing and intensive land use since prehistoric times have eroded and levelled most square barrows, although the ditches and the grave pits, with their contents, will survive beneath the ground surface. All examples of square barrows which survive as upstanding earthworks, and a significant proportion of the remainder, are considered of national importance and worthy of protection.
The square barrow cemetery, 670m north west of Creyke Farm is a good example of a compact Iron Age cemetery. Although the earthworks of the cemetery have been reduced by ploughing, excavation of other similar sites indicate that the primary burials in the individual barrows are likely to remain undisturbed below the plough soil. The monument is thus expected to retain significant archaeological information not only relating to Iron Age burial rites but also environmental information, which will inform our understanding of the nature of the surrounding landscape. This barrow group thus contributes to our knowledge and understanding of Iron Age settlement and society.
Details
The monument includes an Iron Age square barrow cemetery situated on sloping ground near to the Wold top south of Middle Dale. The cemetery, identified from cropmarks, includes a tightly spaced grouping of at least 30 barrows in a triangle of land. The northern boundary of this triangle is part of a Bronze Age dyke which extends to both east and west beyond the boundaries of the monument, being part of the complex of Bronze Aged boundaries that extend across the Wolds. Part excavation of this dyke in 1975 demonstrated that the dyke consisted of a bank and ditch. The other two sides of the triangular area are defined by less substantial infilled ditches.
Legacy
The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.
Legacy System number:
ER 223
Legacy System:
RSM - OCN
End of official list entry
