Bell barrow on Cockcrow Hill
Listed on the National Heritage List for England. Search over 400,000 listed places
Overview
- Heritage Category:
- Scheduled Monument
- List Entry Number:
- 1012204
- Date first listed:
- 16-Nov-1934
Location
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Discover moreOfficial list entry
- Heritage Category:
- Scheduled Monument
- List Entry Number:
- 1012204
- Date first listed:
- 16-Nov-1934
- Date of most recent amendment:
- 07-Jul-1993
Location
The building or site itself may lie within the boundary of more than one authority.
- County:
- Surrey
- District:
- Guildford (District Authority)
- Parish:
- Wisley
- County:
- Surrey
- District:
- Guildford (District Authority)
- Parish:
- Ockham
- National Grid Reference:
- TQ 07899 59135
Reasons for Designation
Bell barrows, the most visually impressive form of round barrow, are funerary monuments dating to the Early and Middle Bronze Age, with most examples belonging to the period 1500-1100 BC. They occur either in isolation or in round barrow cemeteries and were constructed as single or multiple mounds covering burials, often in pits, and surrounded by an enclosure ditch. The burials are frequently accompanied by weapons, personal ornaments and pottery and appear to be those of aristocratic individuals, usually men. Bell barrows (particularly multiple barrows) are rare nationally, with less than 250 known examples, most of which are in Wessex. Their richness in terms of grave goods provides evidence for chronological and cultural links amongst early prehistoric communities over most of southern and eastern England as well as providing an insight into their beliefs and social organisation. As a particularly rare form of round barrow, all identified bell barrows would normally be considered to be of national importance.
Despite partial excavation, the bell barrow on Cockcrow Hill survives well and contains archaeological remains and environmental evidence relating to the monument and the landscape in which it was constructed.
Details
The monument includes a bell barrow situated on a slight rise in the Bagshot Sands. The central mound is up to 20m in diameter and 1.5m high. Surrounding this is a slightly sloping platform, or berm, c.5.5m wide and at a height of 1.5m above the surrounding ground surface from which material was taken during the construction of the monument. The overall diameter of the raised area is 44m. The barrow was partially excavated in 1911 when a cremation burial was discovered.
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:
- 20156
- Legacy System:
- RSM
Sources
Books and journals
Grinsell, L V, Surrey Archaeological Collections in Surrey Barrows 1934-1987: A Reappraisal, (1987)
Other
Ordnance Survey, TQ 05 NE 7, (1966)
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.
Map
This map is for quick reference purposes only and may not be to scale. This copy shows the entry on 13-Jun-2026 at 09:22:31.
Download a full scale map (PDF)End of official list entry
All text content is available under the Open Government Licence v3.0 , except where otherwise stated. Any supplied maps are © Crown Copyright [and database rights] 2026 OS AC0000815036 and may not be reproduced without permission.