Bowl barrow 540m east of Mink Patches

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.

Approximately 75% of the barrow 540m east of Mink Patches survives as a visible monument, and although there are some signs that the mound may have been modified or disturbed, it remains standing to a height of around 1m. The mound and the fill of the buried ditch will retain archaeological information concerning the construction of the barrow and the manner and duration of its use. Occupation of the area prior to that period has been demonstrated by finds of worked flints, and information relating to this earlier activity, together with evidence for the local environment at the time of the barrow's construction, will be preserved in soils buried beneath the mound.

Details

The monument includes a bowl barrow situated c.350m west of Peddars Way, on the high ground of what was formerly Massingham Heath. The barrow is visible as an earthen mound with a flattened top, shelving slightly to the south, standing to a height of c.1m and covering a sub circular area with a diameter of c.25m east-west. North-south it measures c.17.5m, the southern edge having been truncated by the road west to Gayton. The mound is believed to be surrounded by a ditch from which earth was dug and used in the construction of the barrow but which has become infilled, although it will survive as a buried feature. Worked flints, including types dated to the later Neolithic period, have been found on the mound and on the surface of the ploughsoil surrounding it, and are evidence for occupation of the site prior to the construction of the barrow.

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:

21392

Legacy System:

RSM

Sources

Other
3780: West Norfolk, Great Massingham,
Bamford, H M, (1994)

End of official list entry

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