Reasons for Designation
A small number of areas in southern England appear to have acted as foci for
ceremonial and ritual activity during the Neolithic and Bronze Age periods.
Two of the best known and earliest recognised areas are around Avebury and
Stonehenge, now jointly designated as a World Heritage Site.
The area of chalk downland which surrounds Stonehenge contains one of the
densest and most varied groups of Neolithic and Bronze Age field monuments in
Britain. Included within the area are Stonehenge itself, the Stonehenge
cursus, the Durrington Walls henge, and a variety of burial monuments, many
grouped into cemeteries.
The area has been the subject of archaeological research since the 18th
century when Stukeley recorded many of the monuments and partially excavated a
number of the burial mounds. More recently, the collection of artefacts from
the surfaces of ploughed fields has supplemented the evidence for ritual and
burial by revealing the intensity of contemporary settlement and land-use. In
view of the importance of the area, all ceremonial and sepulchral monuments of
this period which retain significant archaeological remains are identified as
nationally important.
Round barrow cemeteries date to the Bronze Age (2000-700 BC). They comprise
closely spaced groups of up to 30 round barrows - rubble or earthen mounds
covering single or multiple burials. Most cemeteries developed over a
considerable period of time, often many centuries, and in some cases acted as
a focus for burials as late as the early medieval period. They exhibit
considerable diversity of burial rite, plan and form, frequently including
several different types of round barrow and occasionally associated with
earlier long barrows. Where investigation beyond the round barrows has
occurred, contemporary or later 'flat' burials between the barrow mounds have
often been revealed. Round barrow cemeteries occur across most of lowland
England with a marked concentration in Wessex. In some cases they are
clustered around other important contemporary monuments, as is the case both
here and at Avebury. Often occupying prominent positions, they are a major
historic element in the modern landscape, while their diversity and their
longevity as a monument type provide important information on the variety of
beliefs and social organisation amongst early prehistoric communities.
Bell barrows, the most visually impressive form of round barrow, are funerary
monuments dating from 1600-1200 BC. They occur either in isolation or in
round barrow cemeteries. They were constructed as single or multiple mounds
covering burials often in pits and surrounded by an enclosure ditch. The
burials in bell barrows appear to be those of aristocratic individuals and are
also frequently accompanied by weapons, personal ornaments and pottery
vessels. Bell barrows are rare nationally with only 250 examples known of
which 30 are located within the Stonehenge area.
The twin bell barrow and bell barrow situated south of the Cursus and forming
the eastern part of the Cursus round barrow cemetery survive well and are
known from partial excavation to contain archaeological remains and
environmental evidence relating to the monument and the landscape in which it
was constructed.
Details
The monument includes a bell barrow and a twin bell barrow forming the eastern
part of the Cursus round barrow cemetery, situated south of the Cursus on an
east-west ridge with views across Stonehenge to Normanton Down. The Cursus
round barrow cemetery contains 16 round barrows in all, including seven bowl
barrows, six bell barrows, a twin bell barrow and a disc barrow.
The twin barrow has a western mound 17m in diameter by 2.5m high and an
eastern mound 15m in diameter and 1.7m high. This barrow is surrounded by a
ditch 5m wide and 1m deep. It is slightly oval in shape with an overall size
of 42m east-west by 33m north-south. Adjacent to it on the east is a large
bell barrow, the mound of which is 25m in diameter and 3.5m high, surrounded
by a berm and ditch and having an overall diameter of 59m.
Partial excavation of the twin barrow in the 18th and 19th centuries yielded
an inhumation and a cremation in a cist in the western mound, and a cremation
in an urn accompanied by bronze, amber and shale objects in the eastern mound.
All fence posts are excluded from the scheduling but the ground beneath these
features 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.
