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, Basin Howe round barrow immediately north of
Wellspring Farm, is in a very good state of preservation. Unlike many
barrows in this area it does not appear to have been excavated in the past
and it will therefore have undisturbed archaeological deposits in the
centre relating to the primary burials, which are less likely to survive
in the part-excavated barrows. 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 outer bank and within the buried
ditch.
This is the only barrow on the eastern Tabular Hills which is known to
have been constructed with an outer bank and as such is a rare and
important example which illustrates the diversity of burial practice
within the area. It lies in an area where there are many other burial
monuments, as well as a concentration of prehistoric land boundaries. The
relationships between these monuments are important for understanding the
division and use of the landscape for social, ritual and agricultural
purposes during the later prehistoric period.
Details
The monument includes a round barrow which is situated in a prominent
position on level ground towards the northern scarp edge of the Tabular
Hills. The barrow has an earth and stone mound which stands up to 3m high
and has a maximum diameter of 32m. The mound was originally surrounded by
a ditch with an outer bank. The ditch has become largely filled in over
the years by soil slipping from the mound and the bank has been levelled,
so that they are only visible as earthwork features in the north west
quadrant, where the ditch survives up to 5m wide and 0.2m deep and the
bank survives up to 3m wide and 0.2m high. The barrow has been disturbed
in the past by the insertion of a stone-built shed into the southern side
of the mound and by the construction on the top of the mound of a brick
platform to support a water tank.
The barrow lies in an area where there are many other burial monuments as
well as the remains of prehistoric land division.
A number of features are excluded from the scheduling. These are: all
walls crossing the monument, the surface of the paved driveway, the brick
water tank support with water tank and pipes, the calor gas tank and
supply pipes and the stone shed set into the side of the mound; however,
the ground beneath all these features is included.
MAP EXTRACT
The site of the monument is shown on the attached map extract.
