Round barrows W of Ditchling Beacon

Summary

Four bowl barrows, 802m east of New Barn Farm.

Reasons for Designation

Bowl barrows, the most numerous form of round barrow, are funerary monuments dating from the Late Neolithic period to the Late Bronze Age, with most examples belonging to the period 2400-1500 BC. They were constructed as earthen or rubble mounds, sometimes ditched, which covered single or multiple burials. They occur either in isolation or grouped as cemeteries and often acted as a focus for burials in later periods. Often occupying prominent locations, they are a major historic element in the modern landscape and their considerable variation of form and longevity as a monument type provide important information on the diversity of beliefs and social organisations amongst early prehistoric communities. They are particularly representative of their period.

Despite having been part-levelled by ploughing the four bowl barrows, 802m east of New Barn Farm, will contain archaeological information and environmental evidence relating to the barrows and the landscape in which they were constructed.

History

See Details.

Details

This record was the subject of a minor enhancement on 6 November 2014. The record has been generated from an "old county number" (OCN) scheduling record. These are monuments that were not reviewed under the Monuments Protection Programme and are some of our oldest designation records.

The monument includes four bowl barrows, forming part of a round barrow cemetery, situated on a chalk ridge near Keymer Post, WSW of Ditchling Beacon on the South Downs.

The barrows have been part-levelled by ploughing but survive as buried remains and/or earthworks. The barrows were originally formed of broadly circular-shaped mounds surrounded by in-filled quarry ditches from which material to construct the mounds was excavated. In the late 20th century, the mounds were recorded as between 8m and 12m in diameter and up to 0.6m high with slight hollows in the centre, possibly the result of unrecorded excavation.

Legacy

The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.

Legacy System number:

WS 284

Legacy System:

RSM - OCN

Sources

Other
West Sussex HER 4156 - MWS758, 4152 - MWS752, 4154 - MWS751, 4153 - MWS750. NMR TQ31SW9, TQ31SW8. PastScape 403025, 403020.

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