Scheduled Monument: Group of six bowl barrows, forming a round barrow cemetery on Black Hill (1015897)

EXTRACT FROM ENGLISH HERITAGE'S RECORD OF SCHEDULED MONUMENTS MONUMENT: Group of six bowl barrows, forming a round barrow cemetery on Black Hill PARISH: BERE REGIS TURNERS PUDDLE DISTRICT: PURBECK COUNTY: DORSET NATIONAL MONUMENT NO: 29050 NATIONAL GRID REFERENCE(S): SY83669403, SY83719411, SY83779394, SY83989422 DESCRIPTION OF THE MONUMENT The monument, which falls into four separate areas, includes a group of six bowl barrows aligned broadly north east by south west, and situated on a plateau known as Black Hill, overlooking the Piddle Valley to the south and the Bere Valley to the north east. The barrows each have a mound composed of sand, earth and turf; these have maximum dimensions which range between 12m-16m in diameter and c.0.9m-1.5m in height. Surrounding each mound is a ditch from which material was quarried during the construction of the monument. The ditches have become infilled over the years, but each will survive as a buried feature 1.5m wide. 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 group of six bowl barrows forming a round barrow cemetery on Black Hill survive 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 6th October 1959 as: COUNTY/NUMBER: Dorset 412 NAME: Group of six round barrows on Black Hill The reference of this monument is now: NATIONAL MONUMENT NUMBER: 29050 NAME: Group of six bowl barrows, forming a round barrow cemetery on Black Hill SCHEDULING REVISED ON 22nd July 1997

Record last edited

Jan 17 2025 4:27PM