Scheduled Monument: Bowl barrow 550m WNW of West End Barn (SM27400)

EXTRACT FROM ENGLISH HERITAGE'S RECORD OF SCHEDULED MONUMENTS MONUMENT: Bowl barrow 550m WNW of West End Barn PARISH: DEWLISH DISTRICT: WEST DORSET COUNTY: DORSET NATIONAL MONUMENT NO: 27400 NATIONAL GRID REFERENCE(S): SY78299654 DESCRIPTION OF THE MONUMENT The monument includes a bowl barrow 550m WNW of West End Barn, part of an extensive group of at least 15 barrows and ring ditches on Lord's Down, situated on a west facing slope below the summit of the hill. The barrow has a mound which is c.25m in diameter and a maximum of 1m high. Surrounding the mound is a quarry ditch from which material was excavated during its construction. This has become infilled over the years but survives as a buried feature c.3m wide. This barrow was probably excavated by Warne in 1882 when it was found to contain a primary cremation with a bronze ogival dagger in a cist cut into the natural chalk. The cist was covered with a flint cairn which also contained urn fragments. All fence posts and the road surface where it falls within the barrow's protective margin, are excluded from the scheduling although the ground beneath these features is included. ASSESSMENT OF IMPORTANCE Bowl barrows, the most numerous form of round barrow, 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 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. 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 bowl barrows recorded nationally (many more have already been destroyed), occurring across most of lowland Britain. Often occupying prominent locations, they are a major historic element in the modern landscape and their considerable variation of 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. The bowl barrow 550m WNW of West End Barn, although reduced in height by ploughing, and despite the possibility of it being partly excavated in the past, will include archaeological remains containing information about Bronze Age burial practices, economy and environment. SCHEDULING HISTORY Monument included in the Schedule on 17th July 1961 as part of: COUNTY/NUMBER: Dorset 536 NAME: Group of round barrows on Lord's Down The reference of this monument is now: NATIONAL MONUMENT NUMBER: 27400 NAME: Bowl barrow 550m WNW of West End Barn SCHEDULING REVISED ON 14th February 1997

Record last edited

Apr 19 2011 12:30PM