Bowl barrow on Cold Kitchen Hill, 740m north east of Seagram's Barn

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 having been spread by ploughing, the barrow 740m north east of Seagram's Barn will contain archaeological remains and environmental evidence relating to the monument and to the landscape in which it was constructed.

Details

The monument includes a bowl barrow situated 740m north east of Seagram's Barn on Cold Kitchen Hill, a chalk ridge on the northern edge of the Wylye Valley commanding extensive views to the south and north east. The barrow comprises a mound 14m in diameter and 0.3m high surrounded by a ditch from which material was quarried during its construction. This has become infilled and survives as a buried feature 3m wide. An additional bowl barrow to the east end and a long barrow to the north are the subject of separate schedulings.

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:

31678

Legacy System:

RSM

Sources

Books and journals
Grinsell, L V, The Victoria History of the County of Wiltshire, (1957), 162

End of official list entry

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