Bell barrow 125m west of Longlands Farm, forming part of the Longlands round barrow cemetery

Reasons for Designation

Round barrow cemeteries date to the Bronze Age (c.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, occasionally associated with earlier long barrows. Where large scale investigation has been undertaken around them, contemporary or later "flat" burials between the barrow mounds have often been revealed. Round barrow cemeteries occur across most of lowland Britain, with a marked concentration in Wessex. In some cases, they are clustered around other important contemporary monuments such as henges. Often occupying prominent locations, they are a major historic element in the modern landscape, whilst their diversity and their longevity as a monument type provide important information on the variety of beliefs and social organisation amongst early prehistoric communities. They are particularly representative of their period and a substantial proportion of surviving or partly-surviving examples are considered worthy of protection.

The Longlands round barrow cemetery developed around an earlier long barrow. The bell barrow 125m west of Longlands Farm survives comparatively well and will contain archaeological and environmental information relating to the cemetery and the landscape in which it was constructed.

Details

The monument includes a bell barrow situated on a north facing chalk ridge overlooking the valley of the South Winterbourne to the north. The barrow is one of a group of six which together form the Longlands barrow cemetery. The barrow has a central mound composed of earth, chalk and flint with a maximum diameter of 38m and a maximum height of c.0.8m. The mound is known from a survey conducted in the 1960's to have been surrounded by a berm or gently sloping platform. The berm has since become integrated into the profile of the mound as a result of ploughing. Surrounding the berm is a ditch from which material was quarried during the construction of the monument. The ditch is no longer visible at ground level, having become infilled over the years, but it is known to have been visible as an earthwork 3.5m wide in the 1960s and it will survive as a buried feature.

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:

22947

Legacy System:

RSM

Sources

Books and journals
Historical Monuments in the County of Dorset: Volume I, (1970), 464
Historical Monuments in the County of Dorset: Volume I, (1970), 464

End of official list entry

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