Reasons for Designation
Long barrows were constructed as earthen or drystone mounds with flanking
ditches and acted as funerary monuments during the Early and Middle Neolithic
periods (3400-2400 BC). They represent the burial places of Britain's early
farming communities and, as such, are amongst the oldest field monuments
surviving visibly in the present landscape. Where investigated, long barrows
appear to have been used for communal burial, often with only parts of the
human remains having been selected for interment. Certain sites provide
evidence for several phases of funerary monument preceding the barrow and,
consequently, it is probable that long barrows acted as important ritual sites
for local communities over a considerable period of time. Some 500 long
barrows are recorded in England. As one of the few types of Neolithic
structure to survive as earthworks, and due to their comparative rarity, their
considerable age and their longevity as a monument type, all long barrows are
considered to be nationally important.
Details
The monument is situated in the north-west uplands of the limestone plateau of
Derbyshire and is a long barrow which includes a straight-sided linear mound
measuring 42m from east to west by 18m from north to south. At its east end it
is c.1m high and, at its west end, c.0.5m high. The east end of the barrow has
been truncated by ploughing and faint plough ridges can be seen running north
to south, most clearly near the western end of the barrow. There has been no
recorded excavation of the site though Bray, writing in 1775, records that
human bones were found there in the 18th century. The form and location of the
monument, below the crest of a hill, date it to the Neolithic period.
Legacy
The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.
Legacy System number:
23266
Legacy System:
RSM
Sources
Books and journals
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 Culture, Media and Sport.
End of official list entry
