Round barrow 250m north east of Painsthorpe Wold Cottages

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.

Despite partial excavation this barrow survives reasonably well and will retain significant evidence on its original construction and the burials placed within it.

Details

The monument includes a Bronze Age round barrow situated on Painsthorpe Wold. The barrow mound has a diameter of 25m and survives to a height of 0.5m. The mound has an uneven profile and falls away steeply on its western side. Although no longer visible at ground level, a ditch, from which material was excavated during the construction of the monument, surrounds the barrow mound. This has become in-filled over the years, but survives as a buried feature 3m wide. This barrow is part of a wider group in the area and, like many of the other nearby monuments, it was investigated by J R Mortimer in 1867. A circle of flat stones was found beneath the mound with two inhumations on it. A cremation, worked flints and a number of pot sherds were also recovered from the mound.

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:

21088

Legacy System:

RSM

Sources

Books and journals
Mortimer, J, Burial Mounds of East Yorkshire, (1905), 119-120
Clarke, D L, The Beaker Pottery of Great Britain and Ireland, (1970), 508
Mortimer, J R, Forty Years Researches in British and Saxon Burial Mounds of East Yorkshire, (1905), 119

Other
4234, Humberside SMR (4234),

End of official list entry

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