Gautries Hill bowl barrow

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 partially excavated, Gautries Hill bowl barrow is still a reasonably well-preserved example in which further significant archaeological remains survive.

Details

The monument is situated at the summit of Gautries Hill in the north-west uplands of the limestone plateau of Derbyshire. It is a bowl barrow which includes a sub-circular mound measuring 17m by 15m and standing c.1.5m high. It is in a prominent location and is mutually visible with barrows on the tops of nearby Snels Low and Eldon Hill. A partial excavation of the site was carried out in 1876 by Pennington and Tym who discovered two limestone cists or graves, in which were found numerous flints and a bone pin. Elsewhere in the mound, human and animal bones were uncovered in addition to further flints and the remains of a pottery food vessel. The remains date the barrow to the Bronze Age.

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:

23267

Legacy System:

RSM

Sources

Books and journals
Barnatt, J, The Peak District Barrow Survey (1989), (1989)
Barnatt, J, The Peak District Barrow Survey (1989), (1989)
Pennington, R, The Barrows and Bone Caves of Derbyshire, (1877), 26

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