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, this barrow has survived well. Significant
information about the original form of the barrow and the burials placed
within it will be preserved. Evidence for earlier land use and the
contemporary environment will also survive beneath the barrow mound.
The southern of two round barrows known as Row Howes, 680m south east of East
Moor Farm, is one of a pair of burial monuments and such clusters provide an
important insight into the development of ritual and funerary practice during
the Bronze Age.
Details
The monument includes a round barrow situated on the Tabular Hills, in a
prominent position at the top of the steep-sided slope in Sawdon Dale. The
barrow has an earthen mound which has been spread by ploughing and measures up
to 30m in diameter. It stands up to 0.5m high.
The barrow is one of a pair and lies within a dense concentration of
prehistoric burial monuments, in an area which also includes the remains of
prehistoric settlement and land division.
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.
