Monument record MDO396 - Bowl barrow in Seven Barrow Plantation, Bradford Peverell

Bowl barrow in Seven Barrow Plantation, Bradford Peverell. In 1952 this monument was recorded as being 55 feet in diameter and 4 to 5 feet high.

A group of barrows and mounds in Seven Barrow Plantation: (2)

Further mounds in Seven Barrow Plantation are shown on OS 25" 1929 and OS 6" 1963 but not mentioned by RCHM or Grinsell.

'Q' - SY 64759245. No further information. A mound situated beside a feature annotated 'Tanks' on OS 6" 1963 at SY 64919249 may be a ?covered reservoir. Not shown on OS 6" 1903. (6)

An unusual barrow group situated near the crest of a broad south-west spur. The undergrowth which formerly obscured the group and limited investigation has been removed and the north-west half of the area completely cleared of woodland. This part is regularly used as a cattle pen with the consequence that severe damage is incurred by their trampling, especially to the lower monuments. See plan and ground photographs.

'Q'. SY 64759244. A bowl barrow, 9.5 metres in diameter and 0.4 metres high, with no trace of a ditch. Barrows surveyed at 1:2500 on M.S.D.

National Record of the Historic Environment, 453739 (Digital archive). SDO14739.

Ordnance Survey, Ordnance Survey 1 to 25 inch scale map, 1929 (Map). SDO18020.

(Centred SY 647924) Tumuli (NR) (fifteen shown)

Trust for Wessex Archaeology, 1986, Dorset Barrow Survey, Papworth MDJ 18 January 1986 (Index). SDO134.

‘This barrow may be scheduled but not mentioned by site visits in the 1950s by Ordnance Survey, Grinsell and RCHM, although RCHM marks the site on its map of the barrow group (RCHM/1952/Dorset Vol 1 p35). The reason for the omission is mentioned by Rigg (Desc text/OS 495/Rigg J/1954) – “the area in which these barrows lie is so densely covered with trees and undergrowth that it could only be penetrated in part”. Quinnell (Desc text/OS 495/Quinnell N V/1981) notes a radical change to the area by 1981 – “the undergrowth which obscured the group and limited investigation has been removed and the NW half of the area completely cleared of woodland. This part is regularly used as a cattle pen, with the consequence that sever damage is incurred by their trampling”. This faint rise now lies in a small field ploughed and sown with grass. The mound has been ploughed and a track immediately to the NW has damaged the perimeter of the mound. Beyond a fence to the NE is a storage area where large bales of straw are stored. The entrance to this area lies 30m NE of this barrow and turning vehicles will probably cause further damage to the mound. This site is part of an important and unusual group of barrows. The recent change in land use threatens previously unploughed substantial earthworks; some scheduled monuments have been ploughed for the first time.’

Bartlett, A, 2013, Seven Barrow Plantation, Penn Hill, Bradford Peverell, West Dorset. Report on Archaeological Geophysical Survey 2013 (Unpublished document). SDO16515.

Quinnell, N V, Various, Field Investigators Comments NVQ, F2 NVQ 17-MAR-81 (Unpublished document). SDO11903.

<1> Royal Commission on Historical Monuments England, 1952, An Inventory of Historical Monuments in the County of Dorset, Volume I (West), 35-6 (Monograph). SDO97.

<2> Grinsell, L V, 1959, Dorset Barrows, 96 (Monograph). SDO132.

<3> Lovell, J, 1997, 33KV Mains Replacement, Bradford Peverell, Dorset. Archaeological Watching Brief (Unpublished document). SDO12343.

Record last edited

Nov 27 2024 1:57PM