A bowl barrow on Whiteleaf Hill, 90m north of Whiteleaf Cross

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 disturbance to the central area of the barrow mound, much of the round barrow 90m north of Whiteleaf Cross still survives comparatively well and will contain important archaeological remains. Environmental material relating to the landscape in which the monument was constructed may also survive sealed on the old land surface beneath the barrow mound. The close proximity of other monuments of a similar period add to the significance of the site, and give an indication of the intensity with which the area was exploited during the Bronze Age period.

Details

The monument includes a bowl barrow situated on the western edge of Whiteleaf Hill chalk escarpment. The barrow mound has been disturbed but survives as a low mound 18m in diameter and up to 0.5m high. The whole centre of the mound is hollowed to a depth of 0.4m giving a dished appearance, probably as the result of some early exploration of the mound. Secondary disturbances, in the form of two collapsed and turf covered trenches 12m long and 2m wide, cross the centre of the mound at right angles to each other, splitting it into four equal segments. This suggests that the barrow has been subjected to archaeological investigation at some time in the past, though there appears to be no record of this. Surrounding the mound are traces of a ditch from which material for the mound was quarried during the construction of the monument. This survives around the north and south sides as a shallow earthwork 3m wide and 0.3m deep and as a buried feature elsewhere.

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:

19048

Legacy System:

RSM

Sources

Other
Aerial Photograph,

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