Monument record MDO6543 - Portland: Beehive chambers at King Barrow

Between 1880 and 1884 over a dozen circular corbelled stone chambers were found in an area of half a mile in Weston's and Steward's quarries at King Barrow Portland, a further two were found in 1885 and 1886.

[Area centred SY 69157290] From KING BARROW and in the DORSET COSUNTY MUSEUM "a quern stone found close to one or two beehive cells though to be "BHUT HOLES". A mortar and flint balls (mulling stones) found close to one or two beehive cells. Found June 4 1898. <1> Corn [Carbonised grain] from a beehive chamber at KING BARROW. Found in a pot close to human remains. <2> KING BARROW was quarried about 1890-1900. There were considerable finds, I believe, which were taken to DORSET COUNTY MUSEUM but I know no details. <3> The curator of DORSET COUNTY MUSEUM could not be contacted at the time of field investigation. The area has been quarried out and no trace of anything was found. The name KING BARROW points to the probability of a barrow of that name being situated there before quarrying began. The site is on a plateau. (<4> Over a dozen circular corbelled stone structures- beehive chambers- were found within a half a mile area in Weston's and Steward's quarries at King Barrow. The chambers were generally about 9 ft in diameter and 8ft high, though dimensions of 6ft by 4ft and 12 ft by 8ft are known. They were built by digging a hole into limestone rubble to an underlying clay seam. They were lined with flat stones, and corbelled towards the top where a man-hole of 16 inches across provided access. This was normally covered with a slab, at the base of the overlying humus. Some of the chambers found were corbelled from the base. The chambers nearly all stood alone with distances of 10 to 15 yards between them, however two of the chambers were superimposed. The entrance to the lower chamber was in the middle of the floor of the upper chamber. In another instance two chambers were joined at the base either directly, or by a short stone lined tunnel, the descriptions differ slightly here. The chambers are said to have contained domestic animal bones, limpet shells, round pebbles from Chesil Beach, slingstone, flint flakes, pieces of Kimmeridge shale, a bronze coin and a quantity of carbonised grain. After these initial discoveries made between 1880 and 1884, two more were found in 1885 and 1886.. The chamber found in 1885 contained a stone spindle-whorl and a roughly hollowed out pebble mortar outside, the other chamber discovered in 1886 contained sling-stones and limpet shells. <5>

Record last edited

Jan 4 2024 3:06PM