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 includes a chambered long barrow orientated north-south and
situated below the crest of a hill overlooking a tributary to the Congresbury
Yeo river.
The barrow has a mound c.60m long, c.25m wide and up to c.2.5m high. It has
rounded edges and is composed of limestone rubble covered in a layer of soil
and retained by a dry stone wall. The mound originally contained a burial
chamber at its northern end. This has since been largely removed but a
partial excavation in 1788 is reported to have produced evidence for a gallery
with several chambers containing skeletal material.
Flanking either side of the monument are side ditches from which material was
quarried during its construction. These are not visible at ground level,
having become infilled over the years, but they survive as buried features
c.3m wide.
Exclusions from the scheduling include the ruined farm building situated
towards the southern end of the monument and all fence posts relating to field
boundaries, although the underlying ground is included.
Legacy
The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.
Legacy System number:
22826
Legacy System:
RSM
Sources
Books and journals Other
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
