Bowl barrow 510m north of Latham Hall

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 19th and 20th century investigation of the monument the bowl barrow 510m north of Latham Hall remains a well preserved earthwork. The 19th century excavation located human and faunal remains together with flint and bronze artifacts, and further evidence of interments and grave goods will exist within the mound and upon the old landsurface.

Details

The monument includes a bowl barrow located in a slight saddle on the crest of a broad low ridge 510m north of Latham Hall. It survives as a slightly oval earth and stone mound up to 2m high with maximum dimensions of 27m by 26.5m. A central pit 4m diameter and 0.4m deep is the site of limited antiquarian investigation. On the south-east side of the mound is a recently backfilled trench measuring 5m by 2.5m that marks the site of a 1959 excavation, and nearby is an area of partial robbing or quarrying. The 19th century investigation located a rock-cut grave containing an inhumation together with a bronze dagger and a flint artifact. Above this grave were animal bones and flints and above these, near the surface of the barrow, was an extended inhumation. No finds were recovered during the 1959 work. A signpost on the south-east side of the mound is excluded from the scheduling. The ground beneath it, however, 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:

13578

Legacy System:

RSM

Sources

Books and journals
Barnatt, J, The Peak District Barrow Survey (1989), (1989)
Bateman, , Ten Years Digging (1861), (1861), 118
Gunstone, , Leek and District Field Club, (1959)

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

End of official list entry

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