Two round cairns in Mollen Wood, 660m east of Parkgate Bridge

Reasons for Designation

Round cairns are prehistoric funerary monuments dating to the Bronze Age (c.2000-700 BC). They were constructed as stone mounds covering single or multiple burials. These burials may be placed within the mound in stone-lined compartments called cists. In some cases the cairn was surrounded by a ditch. Often occupying prominent locations, cairns are a major visual element in the modern landscape. They are a relatively common feature of the uplands and are the stone equivalent of the earthen round barrows of the lowlands. Their considerable variation in form and longevity as a monument type provide important information on the diversity of beliefs and social organisation amongst early prehistoric communities. They are particularly representative of their period and a substantial proportion of surviving examples are considered worthy of protection.

Despite limited unrecorded archaeological investigation at the centre of the northern cairn and minor damage to both cairns by tree root growth, the two round cairns in Mollen Wood survive reasonably well and will contain undisturbed archaeological deposits within the mounds and upon the old landsurface beneath. The cairns lie close to other prehistoric monuments around Bewcastle, thus indicating the importance of this area in prehistoric times and the diversity of monument classes to be found here.

Details

The monument includes two round cairns located on gently sloping land close to the south east corner of Mollen Wood, 660m east of Parkgate Bridge. The northern cairn includes a circular mound of stones measuring 8m in diameter and up to 1.5m high. A central hollow in the cairn's surface indicates unrecorded archaeological investigation and this disturbance has revealed part of a stone cist which would have held a cremation or inhumation. The southern cairn includes an oval-shaped mound of stones measuring 9m by 6m and up to 0.4m high. Three large boulders on the south side of the monument are thought to be the remains of a kerb which would have originally encircled the cairn.

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:

27767

Legacy System:

RSM

Sources

Other
Darvill,T., MPP Single Monument Class Description - Bowl Barrows, (1988)
Darvill,T., MPP Single Monument Class Description - Bowl Barrows, (1988)
SMR No. 77, Cumbria SMR, Cairn in Mollen Wood, (1985)

End of official list entry

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