Bowl barrow on Ashlet Hill, 800m WSW of Longmynd Hotel

Overview

Location

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 superficially similar, although differing widely in size, they exhibit regional variations in form and a diversity of burial practices. There are over 10,000 surviving bowl barrows recorded nationally (many more have already been destroyed), occurring across most of lowland Britain. 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 and a substantial proportion of surviving examples are considered worthy of protection.

The barrow on Ashlet Hill survives in good condition. It appears intact and undisturbed and is a good example of this class of round barrow. It is one of several such monuments surviving on the Long Mynd and, as such, contributes information relating to the intensity of settlement, nature of land use, burial practice and social structure of the prehistoric community occupying this area of upland during the Bronze Age.

Details

The monument includes the remains of a bowl barrow situated below the summit of Ashlet Hill on a narrow, roughly north to south orientated spur. The barrow is visible as a well defined circular mound 12m in diameter and up to 0.7m high. The perimeter of the mound shows evidence of kerbing around the east and south-west quarters. There is a slightly sunken area immediately east of the barrow centre which may mark the position of a collapsed cist, otherwise the barrow appears entirely undamaged. Although no longer visible as a surface feature, a ditch, from which material was quarried during the construction of the monument, surrounds the mound. This has become infilled over the years but survives as a buried feature with an estimated width of 1.5m. A natural outcrop of stone to the north-east was probably used as a source of building material for the construction of the monument.

MAP EXTRACT The site of the monument is shown on the attached map extract. It includes a 2 metre boundary around the archaeological features, considered to be essential for the monument's support and preservation.

Legacy

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

Legacy System number:

19128

Legacy System:

RSM

Legal

This monument is scheduled under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979 as amended as it appears to the Secretary of State to be of national importance. This entry is a copy, the original is held by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport.