Bowl barrow in Tingley Field Plantation, near Pegsdon

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.

The barrow in Tingley Field Plantation is well preserved and lies within proximity of another large barrow at Knocking Knoll.

Details

The barrow in Tingley Field Plantation is located at the top of a north west facing scarp of the Chilterns and within 500m of the Icknield Way. The burial mound is about 20m in diameter and almost 3m high. Although no longer visible at ground level, a ditch from which material was quarried during the construction of the monument surrounds the barrow mound. This has become infilled over the years and survives as a buried feature c.3m wide. A number of barrows were documented in the area by the 18th century antiquarian, William Stukeley but there is no evidence that the mound has been disturbed by excavation. The barrow lies within sight of a second barrow at Knocking Knoll.

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:

20413

Legacy System:

RSM

Sources

Books and journals
Stukeley, W, Itinerarium Curiosum, I, (1724)
Pevsner, N, The Buildings of England: Bedfordshire, Huntingdon and Peterborough, (1968)
Dyer, J, B.A.J. in Field system survey of Knocking Hoe National Nature Reserve, (1964)
Thomas, N, Bedfordshire Archaeologist in Bedfordshire Archaeologist, Volume 1. no 3, (1956)
Dyer, J F, Archaeological Journal in Barrows of the Chilterns, Vol. CXVI, (1959)

Other
Title: Ordnance Survey 1" Series Source Date: 1834 Author: Publisher: Surveyor:

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