Monument record MDO7095 - Long barrow west of Bere Down Buildings, Bere Regis

A long barrow situated just below the top of a chalk ridge, and incorporated into a later prehistoric field boundary. In 1970 this monument was reported as being an earthwork with possible traces of a ditch. The mound was around 176 feet long, 65 feet wide at its widest point, and 7 feet high at the eastern end. Traces of a long trench along the mound indicate that this barrow has been the object of antiquarian investigation. Scattered sarsen stones on and in the vicinity of the mound suggest this may be the remains of a chambered long barrow. The long barrow is visible as earthworks on aerial photographs taken in 1976 and was digitally recorded during the Dorset Middle Stour AIM.

SY 829972. Bere Regis long barrow (Wessex No 155). Listed. <3>

Long barrow on Bere Down, ploughed and spread but still visible from a distance, although unsurveyable. <4>

SY 82989725. A long barrow, generally as described by R.C.H.M. (2), though it has been further reduced by ploughing. From the south it appears as a gently-sloping ridge, but from the north where the air photograph shows that the barrow once formed the northern boundary of a field of the prehistoric system (SY 89 NW 12), it merges into the hillside with but a minimum of height (0.1 metres). Its length is now 50.0 metres, its width 15.0 metres maximum, and height from the south (downhill) side 1.2 metres. Resurveyed at 1:2500 on M.S.D. (5)

The barrow mound now measures a maximum of 55 metres in length, 24 metres in width and between 0.5 to 0.75 metres in height. Scheduling revised 09/03/01. <6>

See vertical A/P reference RAF/CPE/UK/1934 4120

The long barrow is visible as earthworks on aerial photographs taken in 1976 <7> and was digitally recorded during the Dorset Middle Stour AIM. <2>

<1> Ordnance Survey, Ordnance Survey Map 6in, 1968 (Map). SWX1540.

(SY 82989725) Long Barrow (NR)

<2> Royal Commission on Historical Monuments (England), 1970, An Inventory of Historical Monuments in the County of Dorset, Volume II (South East) Part 3, 431 (Monograph). SDO150.

'(66) LONG BARROW, possibly chambered (SY 89 NW; 82989725), lies on Bere Down, about 200 ft. above O.D., just below the crest of a broad chalk ridge, on ground sloping gently to N.W., W. and S.; it is only seen in silhouette at close range from N. and S.

On a bearing of 70°, it is 176 ft. long, 65 ft. wide in the middle where widest, and some 7 ft. high at the E. end and 6 ft. at the W. A slight terrace, some 45 ft. wide, parallel to the barrow in the S., probably marks the site of the ditch. The centre of the mound has been cut into from the S. and the spine hollowed for 114 ft. from the W. end. Five sarsen boulders, none more than 2½ ft. long and 1½ ft. deep, lie scattered, two on the hollowed spine and three in the S. excavation where there is a large heap of flints. The barrow was used as a 'Celtic' field boundary (see Ancient Field Group (30)), and lynchets run up to it, crossing the line of any ditch that may have existed on the N. The mound has been damaged by rabbits and ploughing.'

<3> Ashbee, P, 1970, The Earthen Long Barrow in Britain, 162 (Monograph). SDO16712.

<4> English Heritage, Field Monument Warden report, A T Lloyd 8 4 1980 (Unpublished document). SDO19187.

<5> Barton, J G, Various, Field Investigators Comments JGB, F1 JGB 15-MAY-81 (Unpublished document). SDO11900.

<5.1> 18.4.80, OS/80/021/161-2 (Aerial Photograph). SDO20491.

<6> English Heritage, Scheduled Monument revision, 09-MAR-2001 (Scheduling record). SDO18414.

<7> John Boyden, 08-JUL-1976, JRB 3305/22 (Aerial Photograph). SDO19878.

<8> National Record of the Historic Environment, 455913 (Digital archive). SDO14739.

Record last edited

Oct 7 2024 4:12PM