Bowl barrow at King's Standing

Listed on the National Heritage List for England. Search over 400,000 listed places

Overview

Heritage Category:: Scheduled Monument
List Entry Number:: 1016437
Date first listed:: 09-Oct-1981

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Official list entry

Heritage Category:: Scheduled Monument
List Entry Number:: 1016437
Date first listed:: 09-Oct-1981
Date of most recent amendment:: 04-Feb-1999

Location

The building or site itself may lie within the boundary of more than one authority.

District:: Birmingham (Metropolitan Authority)
Parish:: Non Civil Parish
National Grid Reference:: SP 08049 95597

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.

The bowl barrow at King's Standing survives well and is believed to include both primary and secondary burials and associated artefacts. These will provide information about the local population, including evidence about dietary habits, diseases and standards of living. Artefactual evidence will indicate social status and illuminate possible ritual practises as well as providing information about any technological developments and the range of contacts available to the population through exchange or trade. The buried ditches and barrow mound will be expected to preserve environmental deposits and sealed ground surfaces which will provide information about the landscape, environment and climate in the vicinity at the time of the barrow's construction. The barrow occupies a prominent landscape position standing adjacent to the route of Ryknield Street Roman road. The monument's links with King Charles I's review of his troops during the Civil War and similarly with a Danish king's military activity, suggests that it has played an important role in the local landscape throughout time.

Details

The monument includes the buried and earthwork remains of the bowl barrow at King's Standing, located in a prominent position on a mild slope above Sutton Park and to the east of Ryknield Street Roman road. The barrow mound stands to a height of between 0.75m to 1.25m, with a diameter of approximately 20m. Although no longer easily visible at ground level, a slight depression at the base of the mound represents a ditch, from which material was quarried during the construction of the monument. This has been partially infilled over the years, but survives as a buried feature approximately 3m wide. The monument features in local folklore linked with King Charles I's review of his troops during the Civil War and similarly with a Danish king's military activity.

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:: 30041
Legacy System:: RSM

Sources

Other
Hodder, M. SMR Officer, Unpublished notes in SMR, notes dating 1700's to 1997.

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.