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, orientated SW-NE and set below the
crest of a steep south-facing slope. The barrow mound has maximum dimensions
of 33m long by 15m wide and survives to a height of 2m when viewed from the
south-west. Flanking quarry ditches run parallel and contiguous to the
barrow mound. These are 5m wide and up to 0.5m deep on the east side and 1m
deep to the west.
Central hollows on the surface of the mound suggest the site may once have
been excavated.
Worked flint artefacts, probably contemporary with the construction and use
of the monument, are visible on the surface of the adjacent ploughed field.
Legacy
The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.
Legacy System number:
12168
Legacy System:
RSM
End of official list entry
