Reasons for Designation
Round barrows 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 mounds, sometimes ditched, which covered
single or multiple burials. They occur either in isolation or grouped as
cemeteries and often acted as a focus of 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 examples recorded nationally (many more have already
been destroyed), occurring across most of Britain, including the Wessex area
where it is often possible to classify them more closely, for example as bowl
or bell barrows. Often occupying prominent locations, they are a major
historic element in the modern landscape and their considerable variation in
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.
The Tabular Hills in the Wykeham Forest area contain a dense concentration of
prehistoric monuments, dating from the Neolithic to the Iron Age, which
includes field systems, enclosures and land boundaries as well as both round
and square barrows. The spatial and chronological relationships between the
round and square barrows in this area, and between both types of barrow and
other prehistoric monuments, are of considerable importance for understanding
the development of later prehistoric society in eastern Yorkshire.
Despite limited disturbance, the three barrows known as the Three Tremblers
have survived well. Significant information about the original form of the
barrows and the burials placed within them will be preserved. Evidence for
earlier land use and the contemporary environment in which they were
constructed will also survive beneath the barrow mounds.
Details
The monument includes three adjacent round barrows situated on level ground
towards the northern edge of the Tabular Hills.
The barrows have well-defined earthen mounds which each have hollows in the
centre, caused by partial excavation in the past. The mound at the north west
is 21m in diameter and stands up to 1.7m high. The central mound lies 26m to
the south east. It is 18m in diameter and stands up to 1.6m high. The third
mound lies 34m to the south east of the central mound. It is 30m in diameter
and stands up to 2.7m high. The north western and south eastern barrows were
each originally surrounded by a kerb of stones which defined the barrow and
supported the mound. However, over the years many of these stones have been
taken away or buried by soil slipping off the mound and they are no longer
visible. Partial excavation of the south eastern barrow in the 19th century
also uncovered a cist, which consisted of stone slabs set into the mound,
surrounding and covering a burial.
The barrows lie within a dense concentration of prehistoric burial monuments
in an area which also includes the remains of prehistoric settlement and land
division.
A surfaced forestry track runs along the north east side of the line of
barrows and passes around the north side of the north western barrow. This is
excluded from the scheduling, although the ground beneath it is included.
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.
