Lamber Low bowl barrow

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 limited antiquarian investigation Lamber Low bowl barrow survives reasonably well. This investigation located human and faunal remains and flint artefacts, and further evidence of interments and grave goods will exist within the barrow and upon the old landsurface.

Details

The monument includes Lamber Low bowl barrow located on the crest of a knife-edge ridge some 320m east of Field House Farm. It survives as a slightly oval mound of stone and soil up to 1.2m high with maximum dimensions of 15.5m by 13m. A tumbled drystone wall crosses the barrow on a north-north- west/south-south-east alignment. A shallow pit 2m in diameter by 0.2m deep lies adjacent to the wall slightly southwest of the barrow's centre and indicates the site of an antiquarian investigation. This investigation located a rectangular cist constructed of limestone and sandstone slabs and measuring 0.9m by 0.6m and 0.65m deep. The cist contained a contracted adult inhumation laid upon the bedrock. Beneath the shoulder were two flint artefacts. Numerous small pebbles, the leg bone of a large dog and a little charcoal were also found in the trench. The remains of the drystone wall are excluded from the scheduling but the ground beneath it is included.

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:

13562

Legacy System:

RSM

Sources

Books and journals
Barnatt, J, The Peak District Barrow Survey (1989), (1989)
Bateman, , Ten Years Digging (1861), (1861), 131

Other
Carrington, Barrow Diggers (Unpub MS with letters and notes), 1848,
Bateman, Illustrations of Antiquity (Unpub volume of drawings), Sheffield City Museum
Bateman, Desc & Obs Further Discoveries in the Barrows of Derbyshire,
Darvill,T., MPP Single Monument Class Description - Bowl Barrows, (1988)

End of official list entry

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