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. The long barrow 350m south-west of Cornerpool Farm survives comparatively well
and contains archaeological and environmental information relating to the
monument and the landscape in which it was constructed.
Details
The monument includes a chambered long barrow situated on level ground 350m
south-west of Cornerpool Farm.
The monument has a long mound which is orientated NNE-SSW and is c.37m long,
c.15m wide and c.0.5m high. The mound is composed of small stones, and a
burial chamber is situated at the northern end. The chamber, which is now
collapsed, includes a fallen portal stone and three supporting stones which
have slumped. This would have provided the main depository for the burials
and will have been a prominent visual feature of the monument since its
construction. Running parallel with the long axis of the mound are two side
ditches from which material was quarried during the construction of the
monument. The ditches are no longer visible at ground level as they have
become infilled over the years, but they survive as buried features c.3m wide.
Prehistoric artefacts, including a chert axe and bronze palstave, have been
discovered in the proximity 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:
22819
Legacy System:
RSM
Sources
Other Mention of Crawford's description, Mention of Crawford's description, Suggestion that mound was levelled, Suggestion that mound was levelled,
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.
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