Reasons for Designation
Long barrows were constructed as earthen or drystone mounds with flanking
ditches and acted as funerary monuments during the Early and Middle Neolithic
periods (3400-2400 BC). They represent the burial places of Britain's early
farming communities and, as such, are amongst the oldest field monuments
surviving visibly in the present landscape. Where investigated, long barrows
appear to have been used for communal burial, often with only parts of the
human remains having been selected for interment. Certain sites provide
evidence for several phases of funerary monument preceding the barrow and,
consequently, it is probable that long barrows acted as important ritual sites
for local communities over a considerable period of time. Some 500 long
barrows are recorded in England. As one of the few types of Neolithic
structure to survive as earthworks, and due to their comparative rarity, their
considerable age and their longevity as a monument type, all long barrows are
considered to be nationally important.
Details
The monument includes a long barrow 150m west of Churchill Copse in Wychwood
Forest. It is situated on a south-facing slope which overlooks a narrow,
enclosed valley.
The barrow mound is orientated east-west and measures 22m long by 14.5m wide
and stands up to 1.6m high. The middle of the mound has been disturbed by an
antiquarian excavation which has created a hollow depression 3m long and 2.5m
wide. This has become partially infilled over the years.
Either side of the barrow mound, but no longer visible at ground level, are a
pair of flanking quarry ditches from which material was obtained during the
construction of the mound. The southern ditch can be seen as an area of
subsidence where it is crossed by a track from Hatching Hill to Churchill
Copse. This ditch is c.4m wide and is separated from the edge of the mound by
a 2m wide berm.
Legacy
The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.
Legacy System number:
21768
Legacy System:
RSM
Sources
Books and journals Other
Legal
This monument is scheduled under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979 as amended as it appears to the Secretary of State to be of national importance. This entry is a copy, the original is held by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.
End of official list entry
