Scheduled Monument: Bowl barrow 300m West of New Planting, forming part of the Three Barrow Clump round barrow cemetery (1013248)

EXTRACT FROM ENGLISH HERITAGE'S RECORD OF SCHEDULED MONUMENTS MONUMENT: Bowl barrow 300m west of New Planting, forming part of the Three Barrow Clump round barrow cemetery PARISH: WINTERBOURNE ABBAS DISTRICT: WEST DORSET COUNTY: DORSET NATIONAL MONUMENT NO: 22958 NATIONAL GRID REFERENCE(S): SY59659023 DESCRIPTION OF THE MONUMENT The monument includes a bowl barrow situated below the crest of a chalk ridge of the South Dorset Downs, overlooking the valley of the South Winterbourne to the north. The barrow forms a western outlier of the group of at least eight round barrows situated to the east, which together form the core of the Three Barrow Clump round barrow cemetery. The barrow has a mound composed of earth, chalk and flint, with a maximum diameter of 8m and a maximum height of c.0.4m. This is surrounded by a ditch from which material was quarried during the construction of the monument. This has become infilled over the years, but it is known from an earlier survey to have been 1.8m wide. This will survive as a buried feature. Excluded from the scheduling are all fence posts relating to the field boundaries, although the ground beneath 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 300m west of New Planting survives comparatively well and will contain archaeological and environmental evidence relating to the Three Barrow Clump cemetery and the landscape in which it was constructed. In addition to this barrow, the cemetery contains a bell barrow, of which 250 are known nationally, and a pond barrow, of which only 60 are known. SCHEDULING HISTORY Monument's inclusion in the Schedule was confirmed on 9th October 1981. Monument included as part of: COUNTY/NUMBER: Dorset 325 NAME: Five round barrows SW of Three Barrow Clump The reference of this monument is now: NATIONAL MONUMENT NUMBER: 22958 NAME: Bowl barrow 300m west of New Planting, forming part of the Three Barrow Clump round barrow cemetery SCHEDULING REVISED ON 18th September 1996

Record last edited

Oct 9 2024 5:24PM