A cairn and a rubble bank in Scale Knoll Allotment, 510m WSW of Haythwaite, Barningham Moor

Reasons for Designation

Round cairns are prehistoric funerary monuments dating to the Bronze Age (c.2000-700 BC). They were constructed as stone mounds covering single or multiple burials. These burials may be placed within the mound in stone-lined compartments called cists. In some cases the cairn was surrounded by a ditch. Often occupying prominent locations, cairns are a major visual element in the modern landscape. They are a relatively common feature of the uplands and are the stone equivalent of the earthen round barrows of the lowlands. Their considerable variation in form and longevity as a monument type provide important information on the diversity of beliefs and social organisation amongst early prehistoric communities. They are particularly representative of their period and a substantial proportion of surviving examples are considered worthy of protection.

Although the cairn 510m WSW of Haythwaite has been slightly disturbed, it retains evidence of its form and location. The adjacent bank survives well. Information on its relationship to the adjacent cairn will be preserved, including information on the changing pattern of land use from burial ground to agricultural field system. Together, the cairn and the bank form an important part of the prehistoric landscape of Barningham Moor, which include numerous other cairns, carved rocks, and evidence for settlements and the agricultural use of the land. This site will therefore contribute to studies of such prehistoric landscapes and the changing patterns of land use over time.

Details

The monument includes a cairn 5m in diameter and an adjacent rubble bank 0.2m high. It is situated on Barningham Moor, in the modern sheep grazing enclosure known as Scale Knoll Allotment. The monument is on a prominent knoll west of Scale Knoll Gill, south of the road from Barningham to East Hope. The cairn is composed of sandstone rocks, 0.5m by 0.4m by 0.4m, and is 0.4m high. The rubble bank is L-shaped with a maximum width of 2m. The bank runs northwards from a point 2m west of the edge of the cairn for 43m, then turns and continues eastwards for a further 14m. It is interpreted as prehistoric in date and would have defined a field area. Similar fragmentary walls survive elsewhere on the moor.

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:

30463

Legacy System:

RSM

Sources

Other
Beckensall, (1997)

End of official list entry

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