Bowl barrow on Stock Hill: part of the Stock Hill 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 bowl barrow on Stock Hill survives comparatively well and will contain archaeological information relating to the cemetery and the landscape in which it was constructed.

Details

The monument includes a bowl barrow forming part of a round barrow cemetery, situated on the south facing slope of Stock Hill. The barrow has a mound 12.5m wide and c.0.5m high, surrounded by a ditch from which material was quarried during its construction. This has become infilled over the years, but survives as a buried feature c.3m wide. The barrow is one of at least seven bowl barrows which originally formed the round barrow cemetery at Stock Hill.

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:

22853

Legacy System:

RSM

Sources

Books and journals
Grinsell, L, Proceedings of the Somerset Archaeology and Natural Hist Soc in Somerset Barrows Part II, (1971), 99-100
Grinsell, L, Proceedings of the Somerset Archaeology and Natural Hist Soc in Somerset Barrows Part II, (1971), 100
Tratman, E K, Proc Univ Bristol Spel Soc in Fieldwork, (1938), 83
Tratman, E K, Proc Univ Bristol Spel Soc in Fieldwork, (1938), 83

Other
Mention of failure to find barrow, Mercer R J, AM 107, (1969)

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