Scheduled Monument: Bowl barrow 320m east of Bere Down Farm (1015379)

EXTRACT FROM ENGLISH HERITAGE'S RECORD OF SCHEDULED MONUMENTS MONUMENT: Bowl barrow 320m east of Bere Down Farm PARISH: BERE REGIS DISTRICT: PURBECK COUNTY: DORSET NATIONAL MONUMENT NO: 28348 NATIONAL GRID REFERENCE(S): SY84339684 DESCRIPTION OF THE MONUMENT The monument includes a bowl barrow situated on the south facing slope of Bere Down, overlooking the Bere Valley to the west. The barrow forms part of a wider group of seven which together form a round barrow cemetery on Bere Down. The barrow, which is referred to as the `Hawke Barrow' on Isaac Taylor's 1777 map of the area, has a mound composed of earth, flint and chalk with maximum dimensions of 22m in diameter and c.1.5m in height. The mound is known to be surrounded by a ditch from which material was quarried during the construction of the monument. The ditch has become infilled over the years, but survives as a buried feature c.2m wide. The mound was part excavated during the 19th century, when a collared urn now held in the Dorset County Museum was recovered. A small sherd of Bronze Age pottery was also discovered within the area of the barrow during the 1950s. The barrow is situated close to a field bank of uncertain date. Excluded from the scheduling are all fence posts relating to the modern field boundary, although the underlying ground is included. ASSESSMENT OF IMPORTANCE Round barrow cemeteries date to the Bronze Age (c.2000-700 BC). They comprise closely-spaced groups of up to 30 round barrows - rubble or earthen mounds covering single or multiple burials. Most cemeteries developed over a considerable period of time, often many centuries, and in some cases acted as a focus for burials as late as the early medieval period. They exhibit considerable diversity of burial rite, plan and form, frequently including several different types of round barrow, occasionally associated with earlier long barrows. Where large scale investigation has been undertaken around them, contemporary or later "flat" burials between the barrow mounds have often been revealed. Round barrow cemeteries occur across most of lowland Britain, with a marked concentration in Wessex. In some cases, they are clustered around other important contemporary monuments such as henges. Often occupying prominent locations, they are a major historic element in the modern landscape, whilst their diversity and their longevity as a monument type provide important information on the variety of beliefs and social organisation amongst early prehistoric communities. They are particularly representative of their period and a substantial proportion of surviving or partly-surviving examples are considered worthy of protection. The bowl barrow 320m east of Bere Down Farm survives well and is known from part excavation to contain archaeological and environmental evidence relating to the cemetery and the landscape in which it was constructed. SCHEDULING HISTORY Monument included in the Schedule on 12th July 1961 as part of: COUNTY/NUMBER: Dorset 636 NAME: Round barrows on Bere Down The reference of this monument is now: NATIONAL MONUMENT NUMBER: 28348 NAME: Bowl barrow 320m east of Bere Down Farm SCHEDULING AFFIRMED ON 05th March 1997 SCHEDULING HISTORY Monument included in the Schedule on 12th July 1961 as part of: COUNTY/NUMBER: Dorset 636 NAME: Round barrows on Bere Down The reference of this monument is now: NATIONAL MONUMENT NUMBER: 28348 NAME: Bowl barrow 320m east of Bere Down Farm SCHEDULING AFFIRMED ON 05th March 1997

Record last edited

Sep 12 2024 9:31AM