Round barrow on Codhill Heights, 860m south east of Codhill Farm

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.

Despite disturbance, the barrow on Codhill Heights, 860m south east of Codhill Farm survives well. Significant information about the original form of the barrow and the burials placed within it will be preserved. Evidence for earlier land use will also survive beneath the barrow mound. Together with other burial monuments in the area this barrow is thought to represent a territorial marker. Similar monument groups are known across the west and central areas of the North York Moors and provide valuable insight into burial practice and land division for social and ritual purposes. It is also situated within an area which includes field systems, enclosures and clearance cairns as well as other burial monuments. Associated groups of monuments such as these offer important scope for the study of the distribution of prehistoric activity across the landscape.

Details

The monument includes a round barrow situated in a prominent hilltop position on the north edge of the North York Moors. The barrow has an earth and stone mound 8m in diameter and standing up to 0.6m high. It was originally surrounded by a kerb of stones which defined the barrow and supported the mound. The kerb stones are still visible around the southern and eastern edges of the mound but many of the others have been either taken away or buried by soil slipping from the mound over the years. A large earthfast boulder measuring up to 1m across is incorporated into the barrow on its north side and a modern marker cairn has been constructed against it. In the centre of the mound there is a hollow caused by excavations in the past. The barrow lies in an area rich in prehistoric monuments, including further barrows, field systems and clearance cairns.

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:

32021

Legacy System:

RSM

Sources

Books and journals
Crawford, G M, Bronze Age Burial Mounds in Cleveland, (1980)
Spratt, D A, Prehistoric and Roman Archaeology in North East Yorkshire in Prehistoric and Roman Archaeology of North East Yorkshire, Vol. 87, (1993)

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