Bowl barrow 130m south-east of Bridge 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 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.

Although this barrow has been partially excavated it survives well as a substantial mound. It is one of a small number of larger barrows in the region and one of the few positively identified as Neolithic in date. Further evidence of the structure of the mound, the surrounding ditch and burials will survive. It will also contribute to an understanding of the wider group of which it is a member.

Details

The monument includes a large Neolithic bowl barrow, one of the few barrows known to date from this early period. It is a member of a wider group of barrows in this area of the Yorkshire Wolds. The steep sided barrow mound is 2.75m high and 40m in diameter. A ditch, from which material was excavated during the construction of the monument, surrounds the barrow mound. This has become almost entirely in-filled in places though it survives as a slight depression up to 0.1m deep and 5m wide on the north-east side of the mound. The mound was investigated by the 19th century antiquarian J R Mortimer in August 1894. The cremated remains of a child were found at its centre and the skeletons of 3 adults, a child, and a juvenile were found on the ancient ground surface. They were accompanied by the skull and a number of bones from a pig and fragments from food vessels of Neolithic date. Two other skeletons were also found; one of these, a woman, was accompanied by a newly-made flint arrowhead. Also contained in the mound were quantities of bone from a range of species which included dogs, wolves, grouse, Irish elk, goats, oxen, and deer, as well as frogs, toads, and water voles.

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:

21242

Legacy System:

RSM

Sources

Books and journals
Mortimer, J R, Forty Years Researches in British and Saxon Burial Mounds of East Yorkshire, (1905), 350-52

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