Bowl barrow 610m ESE of the fire tower on Monkham Hill

Reasons for Designation

Exmoor is the most easterly of the three main upland areas in the south western peninsula of England. In contrast to the others, Dartmoor and Bodmin Moor, there has been no history of antiquarian research and little excavation of its monuments. However, detailed survey work by the Royal Commission on the Historical Monuments of England has confirmed a comparable richness of archaeological remains, with evidence of human exploitation and occupation from the Mesolithic period to the present day. Many of the field monuments surviving on Exmoor date from the later prehistoric period. Examples include stone settings, stone alignments, standing stones, and burial mounds (`barrows'). Bowl barrows, the most numerous form of round barrow, are funerary monuments dating to the Late Neolithic period to the Late Bronze Age, with most examples belonging to the period 2400-1500BC. They were constructed as earthen or rubble mounds, sometimes ditched, which covered single or multiple burials. They occur either in isolation or grouped as cemeteries and often acted as a focus for burials in later periods. Over 370 bowl barrows, varying in diameter from 2m to 35m, have been recorded on Exmoor. Many of these are found on or close to the summits of the three east-west ridges which cross the moor - the southern escarpment, the central ridge, and the northern ridge - whilst individual barrows and groups may also be found on lower lying ground and hillslopes. Those which occupy prominent locations form a major visual element in the modern landscape. Their considerable variation in form and longevity as a monument type provide important information on the diversity of beliefs and social organisation amongst early prehistoric communities. They are particularly representative of their period and a substantial proportion of surviving examples are considered worthy of protection.



Despite the centre of the mound's surface having been disturbed by limited forestry activity, the bowl barrow 610m ESE of the fire tower on Monkham Hill survives comparatively well. It will contain environmental evidence and archaeological deposits relating to the monument and the wider landscape in which it was constructed. In addition, it forms one of a number of prehistoric burial mounds which occupy prominent positions along the central ridge of Exmoor.

Details

The monument includes a bowl barrow located on the east side of Monkham Hill which forms the eastern end of an east-west ridge across Exmoor. The barrow, which is of prehistoric date, is situated in a prominent position just below the summit of the hill. It is formed by a near circular, earthen, bowl-shaped mound, 19m in diameter and 1.4m in height. It is surrounded by a ditch up to 2m wide from which material was quarried for the construction of the mound. Although the quarry ditch has become largely infilled over the years it survives as a slight depression of 0.2m deep on the eastern side of the mound, giving the bowl barrow an overall diameter of 23m.

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:

35710

Legacy System:

RSM

Sources

Books and journals
Grinsell, L V, Proceedings of Somerset Archaelogical & Natural History Society in Somerset Barrows, Vol. 113, (1969), 35

Other
SS 93 NE 3, National Monuments Record,

End of official list entry

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