Three bowl barrows on Trotton Common

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 evidence for partial excavation of the three bowl barrows on Trotton Common, they survive comparatively well and have potential for the recovery of archaeological remains and environmental evidence relating to the landscape in which they were constructed.

Details

The monument includes three bowl barrows aligned south-west to north-east and situated along a ridge of Greensand 4km to the north of the South Downs. The most southerly barrow is the largest of the three, having a central mound 24m in diameter and 2.2m high. Surrounding the mound is a ditch from which material was quarried during the construction of the monument. This is no longer visible, having become infilled over the years, but survives as a buried feature c.3m wide. The central bowl barrow is the smallest, the mound measuring 14m in diameter and 1.3m high. The surrounding quarry ditch has also become infilled and survives as a buried feature c.2m wide. The third bowl barrow has a mound 15m in diameter and 1.6m high. The surrounding ditch has become infilled and survives as a buried feature c.3m wide. There are hollows in the centre of all the mounds suggesting that they were all once partially excavated.

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:

20039

Legacy System:

RSM

Sources

Books and journals
Grinsell, L V, Sussex Archaeological Collection in Sussex Barrows: Supplementary Paper, Vol. 81, (1940)

Other
Ordnance Survey , SU 82 SW 5, (1970)

End of official list entry

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