Round barrow cemetery and earthwork enclosures in Quomp Copse 540m east of Park Cottages

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 round barrow cemetery in Quomp Copse 540m east of Park Cottages is comparatively well preserved and will contain archaeological remains containing information about Bronze Age burial practices, economy and environment. The earthwork enclosures are unusual features and provide evidence of woodland management and the respect shown for earlier monuments.

Details

The monument includes a round barrow cemetery containing five bowl barrows situated in a line, orientated north east-south west, on the edge of a ridge in Quomp Copse, 540m east of Park Cottages. The mounds of the barrows vary in diameter between 7.5m and 13m and in height between 0.6m and 1m. Each mound is surrounded by a ditch from which material for its construction was quarried. The north eastern and south western barrow, at each end of the line, lie within circular earthwork enclosures. These include a bank, ditch and outer bank with overall diameters of 20m and 30m respectively; they are believed to be tree planting enclosures of more recent date. All fence posts are excluded from the scheduling although the ground beneath these features is included.

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:

29556

Legacy System:

RSM

Sources

Books and journals
Aitken, P, A Group of Earthworks in Quomp Copse, Hurn, (1975)
Aitken, P, A Group of Earthworks in Quomp Copse, Hurn, (1975)

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.