Two bowl barrows and a levelled barrow 460m north east of Normanton House on Amesbury Down

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.

Two of the bowl barrows 460m north east of Normanton House on Amesbury Down survive well, and despite the third example being levelled by ploughing, all three barrows will contain archaeological remains and environmental evidence relating to the monument and the landscape in which it was constructed.

Details

The monument includes two bowl barrows and a third levelled barrow situated on a gentle spur overlooking the valley of the River Avon on Amesbury Down. The barrows are arranged in a line broadly north west to south east. The mound of the most northerly barrow is 19m in diameter, 1m high and is surrounded by an infilled ditch about 2m wide from which material was excavated during its construction. The most southerly barrow mound is 26m in diameter, 0.5m high and is surrounded by an infilled quarry ditch which aerial photographs show to be penannular and about 3m wide. The levelled barrow is located between the two extant barrows and is no longer visible at ground level. The quarry ditch is, however, visible on aerial photographs from which its overall diameter is calculated to be 17m.

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:

28933

Legacy System:

RSM

Sources

Books and journals
Hoare, R C, Ancient Wiltshire, (1812), 197f
Grinsell, L V, The Victoria History of the County of Wiltshire, (1957), 152
Grinsell, LV, The Victoria History of the County of Wiltshire: Volume V, (1957), 152
Grinsell, LV, The Victoria History of the County of Wiltshire: Volume V, (1957), 152
Goddard, Rev E H, Wiltshire Archaeological and Natural History Magazine in List of Prehistoric, Roman, and Pagan Saxon Antiquities, (1913), 171
Goddard, Rev E H, Wiltshire Archaeological and Natural History Magazine in List of Prehistoric, Roman, and Pagan Saxon Antiquities, (1913), 171
Goddard, Rev E H, Wiltshire Archaeological Magazine in List of Prehistoric, Roman, and Pagan Saxon Antiquities, Vol. 38, (1914), 171

Other
3, AP Transcription & Analysis, Samuels, J, A303 Amesbury to Berwick Down, -, (1992)
3 Air Photo Transcription & Analysis, Samuels, J, A303 Amesbury - Berwick Down, -, (1992)

End of official list entry

All text content is available under the Open Government Licence v3.0 , except where otherwise stated. Any supplied maps are © Crown Copyright [and database rights] 2026 OS AC0000815036 and may not be reproduced without permission.