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.
Details
The monument includes a group of three bowl barrows orientated east-west
along a sandstone ridge of Creech Heath in the Isle of Purbeck, overlooking
the Purbeck Hills to the south. The barrows form part of a cemetery of five
round barrows on Creech Heath.
The barrows each have a mound composed of earth, sand and turf, with
dimensions of between 10m and 23m and between c.0.5m-2m in height. Each mound
is surrounded by a ditch from which material was quarried during the
construction of the monument. The ditch of the eastern barrow is visible as an
earthwork 2m wide and c.0.5m deep. The ditches of the other two barrows have
become infilled over the years, but will survive as buried features c.1m wide.
Legacy
The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.
Legacy System number:
28318
Legacy System:
RSM
Sources
Books and journals Other
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.
End of official list entry
