Scheduled Monument: Bowl barrow 470m south east of Ashley Wood Golf Club House (1013790)

MONUMENT: Bowl barrow 470m south east of Ashley Wood Golf Club House PARISH: TARRANT RAWSTON DISTRICT: NORTH DORSET COUNTY: DORSET NATIONAL MONUMENT NO: 27363 NATIONAL GRID REFERENCE(S): ST91920611 DESCRIPTION OF THE MONUMENT The monument includes a ditched bowl barrow 470m south east of Ashley Wood Golf Club House, one of several barrows on Rawston Down. The barrow lies between two linear earthworks which extend east from the hillfort. The barrow has a flat topped mound 11m in diameter and 0.5m high, which has an irregular surface and perimeter. The mound is surrounded by a ditch with an irregular profile, 2m wide and 0.2m deep, which is visible on all but the north east side where the mound appears to have been spread across it. ASSESSMENT OF IMPORTANCE Bowl barrows, the most numerous form of round barrow, are funerary monuments dating from the Late Neolithic period to the Late Bronze Age, with most examples belonging to the period 2400-1500 BC. They were constructed as earthen or rubble mounds, sometimes ditched, which covered single or multiple burials. They occur either in isolation or grouped as cemeteries and often acted as a focus for burials in later periods. Often superficially similar, although differing widely in size, they exhibit regional variations in form and a diversity of burial practices. There are over 10,000 surviving bowl barrows recorded nationally (many more have already been destroyed), occurring across most of lowland Britain. Often occupying prominent locations, they are a major historic element in the modern landscape and their considerable variation of form and longevity as a monument type provide important information on the diversity of beliefs and social organisations amongst early prehistoric communities. They are particularly representative of their period and a substantial proportion of surviving examples are considered worthy of protection. The bowl barrow 470m south east of Ashley Wood Golf Club House is a comparatively well preserved example of its class and is closely associated with other bowl barrows on Rawston Down, a later hillfort and its associated linear earthworks. The barrow will contain archaeological remains, providing information about Bronze Age burial practices, economy and environment. SCHEDULING HISTORY Monument included in the Schedule on 26th March 1934 as part of: COUNTY/NUMBER: Dorset 128 NAME: Group of round barrows near Buzbury Rings The reference of this monument is now: NATIONAL MONUMENT NUMBER: 27363 NAME: Bowl barrow 470m south east of Ashley Wood Golf Club House SCHEDULING AFFIRMED ON 14th February 1997

Record last edited

Oct 25 2024 10:28AM