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.
Details
The monument includes a group of four bowl barrows of late Neolithic or Bronze
Age date situated on an apron of flat, low lying ground between the A272 and
the base of War Hill. The barrows are tightly clustered and may originally
have formed the core component of a more extensive round barrow cemetery
arranged around the toe of the hill. Although occupying an apparently
inconspicuous location, the monument would have been prominently visible from
across the valley to the north east, where a coaxial field system, probably
dating to the same period, has been identified from aerial photographs.
The two most substantial barrows lie at the centre of the group and are joined
near the base, possibly having been constructed together as a twin barrow,
with a slight trace of a common surrounding ditch on the eastern side. Both
mounds are circular and steep sided, 25m to 27m in diameter and 2.5m to 2.7m
high. They have flattened or slightly hollowed tops, indicative of possible
later excavation.
The two other barrows flank the central pair to the east and south, separated
from it by distances of four to five metres. They are much less prominent,
both surviving as low, flat topped, circular mounds, 25m in diameter and 0.3m
to 0.4m high. Neither has any trace of a surrounding ditch, although both of
these barrows appear to have been lowered and spread by modern ploughing, and
such ditches, from which material would have been obtained for the mounds'
construction, will survive as buried features, infilled by the later use of
the site.
Legacy
The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.
Legacy System number:
32557
Legacy System:
RSM
End of official list entry
