Scheduled Monument: Bowl barrow in Sares Wood, 430m south west of Wood Barn (SM29056)

EXTRACT FROM ENGLISH HERITAGE'S RECORD OF SCHEDULED MONUMENTS MONUMENT: Bowl barrow in Sares Wood, 430m south west of Wood Barn PARISH: AFFPUDDLE DISTRICT: PURBECK COUNTY: DORSET NATIONAL MONUMENT NO: 29056 NATIONAL GRID REFERENCE(S): SY79699251 DESCRIPTION OF THE MONUMENT The monument includes a bowl barrow situated on a gentle north-facing slope, overlooking the Piddle Valley to the north east and the Frome Valley to the south west. The barrow has a mound composed of earth, gravel and turf, with maximum dimensions of 18m in diameter and approximately 1.1m in height. The mound is surrounded by a ditch from which material was quarried during the construction of the monument. The ditch has become infilled over the years, but will survive as a buried feature approximately 1.5m wide. 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 in Sares Wood, 430m south west of Wood Barn survives well and will contain archaeological and environmental evidence relating to the monument and the landscape in which it was constructed. SCHEDULING HISTORY Monument included in the Schedule on 17th February 1961 as: COUNTY/NUMBER: Dorset 528 NAME: Round Barrow in Sares Wood The reference of this monument is now: NATIONAL MONUMENT NUMBER: 29056 NAME: Bowl barrow in Sares Wood, 430m south west of Wood Barn SCHEDULING AFFIRMED ON 23rd February 1998

Record last edited

Apr 19 2011 6:07AM