Bowl barrow 250m north east of Oak Cottage, forming part of a round barrow cemetery

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 reduction in its height through cultivation, the bowl barrow 250m north east of Oak Cottage, which forms part of the round barrow cemetery, remains an integral part of the larger group and will contain both archaeological and environmental information relating to the monument and its surrounding landscape.

Bowl barrows are the most numerous form of round barrow, with over 10,000 examples recorded nationally. They were constructed as earthen or rubble mounds each covering single or multiple burials.

Details

The monument includes a bowl barrow situated on an upland ridge overlooking the valley of a tributary to Dury Water and forming part of a round barrow cemetery. Seven other barrows which make up the cemetery lie to the south and south west and are the subject of separate schedulings. The monument includes an oval mound which measures 23.8m north east to south west by 18.2m north west to south east and is up to 0.3m high. The surrounding quarry ditch from which material to construct the mound was derived is preserved as a buried feature measuring approximately 3m in width. On the north western side the mound has been partly cut by a field boundary; the boundary itself marks the north western extent of the monument and is not included in the scheduling.

MAP EXTRACT The site of the monument is shown on the attached map extract.

Legacy

The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.

Legacy System number:

34268

Legacy System:

RSM

Sources

Other
Devon County Sites and Monuments Register, SX39NE11, (1983)

End of official list entry

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