Four bowl barrows at the eastern end of Waterston Ridge, 490m south west and 500m south east of Ridge Farm

Reasons for Designation

Round barrow cemeteries date to the Bronze Age (c.2000-700 BC). They comprise closely-spaced groups of up to 30 round barrows - rubble or earthen mounds covering single or multiple burials. Most cemeteries developed over a considerable period of time, often many centuries, and in some cases acted as a focus for burials as late as the early medieval period. They exhibit considerable diversity of burial rite, plan and form, frequently including several different types of round barrow, occasionally associated with earlier long barrows. Where large scale investigation has been undertaken around them, contemporary or later "flat" burials between the barrow mounds have often been revealed. Round barrow cemeteries occur across most of lowland Britain, with a marked concentration in Wessex. In some cases, they are clustered around other important contemporary monuments such as henges. Often occupying prominent locations, they are a major historic element in the modern landscape, whilst their diversity and their longevity as a monument type provide important information on the variety of beliefs and social organisation amongst early prehistoric communities. They are particularly representative of their period and a substantial proportion of surviving or partly-surviving examples are considered worthy of protection.

Despite some reduction by ploughing, the four bowl barrows at the eastern end of Waterston Ridge, 490m south west and 500m south east of Ridge Farm, survive comparatively well and will contain archaeological and environmental evidence relating to the monument and the wider landscape.

Details

The monument, which falls into two separate areas of protection, includes four bowl barrows situated at the eastern end of Waterston Ridge from which there are panoramic views. The barrows originally formed a cemetery of five bowl barrows, although the north eastern example, known as Robin's Barrow, has since been destroyed and is not included in the scheduling. The western barrow was recorded by the Royal Commission on the Historical Monuments of England in 1970. It has a mound composed of earth and chalk, with maximum dimensions of 26m in diameter and about 1.2m in height. Surrounding the mound is a ditch from which material was quarried during its construction. The ditch has become infilled over the years, but will survive as a buried feature 2m wide. To the east, a group of three bowl barrows are aligned north east to south west. Each barrow has a mound with dimensions of between 21m and 25m in diameter and between about 0.45m and about 0.5m in height. Each mound is surrounded by a quarry ditch which has become infilled, but each will survive as a buried feature about 2m wide. The barrows lie on the eastern edge of an extensive area of field system which is likely to have prehistoric origins. The field system has since been reduced by ploughing and is not included in the scheduling.

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:

33169

Legacy System:

RSM

Sources

Books and journals
Historical Monuments in the County of Dorset: Volume I, (1970), 231

Other
Discovery,

End of official list entry

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