Round barrow 450m west of High Langdale End

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.

Despite limited disturbance, the round barrow 450m west of High Langdale End 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 and in the buried ditch. The barrow is one of a group of six burial monuments and such clusters provide important insight into the development of ritual and funerary practice during the Bronze Age.

Details

The monument includes a round barrow situated on a gentle north east facing slope towards the eastern edge of Langdale Forest. The barrow has a well-defined earth and stone mound which stands up to 2.4m high and measures 20m in diameter. The mound was originally surrounded by a ditch up to 3m wide which has become filled in over the years by soil slipping from the mound so that it is no longer visible as an earthwork. In the centre of the mound there is a hollow caused by partial excavation in the past. The barrow is one of a group of six and lies in an area rich in prehistoric monuments including further round barrows, field systems and clearance cairns.

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:

34180

Legacy System:

RSM

Sources

Books and journals
Smith, M J B, Excavated Bronze Age Burial Mounds of Durham and N' land., (1994), 146
Spratt, D A, Prehistoric and Roman Archaeology in North East Yorkshire in Prehistoric and Roman Archaeology of North East Yorkshire, Vol. 87, (1993)

Other
Title: 1st Edition Ordnance Survey 25" sheet 61/16 Source Date: 1892 Author: Publisher: Surveyor:
7855.02,

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