Bowl barrow 770m south east of Sandymoor Cross, forming part of a round barrow cemetery

Overview

Location

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 in its height through cultivation and a slight cut on the southern side, the bowl barrow 770m south east of Sandymoor Cross survives comparatively well. The monument will contain information concerning both the archaeology of the monument and its integral place within the cemetery as a whole, as well as environmental evidence relating to the 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

This monument includes a bowl barrow situated on a high 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 north, north west and north east and are the subject of separate schedulings. The monument includes an oval mound measuring 16.6m long, north to south by 15.9m wide, east to west and 0.5m high. The surrounding outer quarry ditch from which material to construct the mound was derived survives as a buried feature approximately 3m wide. The ditched field boundary and stock proof fence which cross the southern side of the monument are excluded from the scheduling, although the ground beneath these features is included.

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:

34270

Legacy System:

RSM

Sources

Other
Devon County Sites and Monuments Register, SX39NE5, (1983)

Legal

This monument is scheduled under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979 as amended as it appears to the Secretary of State to be of national importance. This entry is a copy, the original is held by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport.