Saucer barrow 220m south of the Club House on Petersfield Heath Common, part of the Petersfield Heath Group

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.

Saucer barrows date to the Early Bronze Age, most examples falling between 1800 and 1200BC. They are one of the rarest recognised forms of round barrow, with about 60 examples known nationally, most of which are in Wessex. The saucer barrow on Petersfield Heath Common 220m south of the Club House survives despite some later disturbance caused by the modern use of the area as a golf course and public recreation ground. This and the other barrows in the group can be expected to retain important archaeological remains and environmental evidence relating to the cemetery and the environment in which it was constructed.

Details

The monument includes a saucer barrow of Bronze Age date, situated on low lying ground near the centre of Petersfield Heath Common. It forms part of a round barrow cemetery east of Heath Pond, known as the Petersfield Heath Group. Now comprising 21 barrows, a first edition Ordnance Survey map dated to 1810 indicates that this round barrow cemetery was formerly more extensive, including further barrows situated to the north and east, now destroyed by modern housing. The saucer barrow has an overall diameter of approximately 15m. It has been nearly levelled by the modern construction of a golf course fairway, but survives as a faint circular ditch, approximately 2m wide and 0.05m deep, and an outer bank which can be seen as a parch mark, about 2m wide. An earthwork survey in 1930 recorded the presence of a central barrow mound as a slightly raised area, 7m in diameter. This mound is now completely level and is crossed by a modern earthen footpath.

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:

32535

Legacy System:

RSM

Sources

Books and journals
Grinsell, L V, Proceedings of the Hampshire Field Club in Hampshire Barrows, Vol. 14, (1939)

End of official list entry

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