Summary

Round cairn called Eastern White Barrow.

Source: Historic England

Details

This record was the subject of a minor enhancement on 18 November 2015. This record has been generated from an "old county number" (OCN) scheduling record. These are monuments that were not reviewed under the Monuments Protection Programme and are some of our oldest designation records.

This monument includes a round cairn known as Eastern White Barrow situated on a prominent ridge on the north eastern side of Quickbeam Hill. The cairn survives as a circular stony mound measuring up to 26m in diameter and 3.5m high. A secondary cylindrical marker cairn is situated on top of the summit allegedly built by soldiers during the Second World War. In 1240, 1609 and 1796 the cairn was one of the bounds of the Forest of Dartmoor.

Further archaeological remains in the vicinity are scheduled separately.

Source: Historic England

Reasons for Scheduling

Dartmoor is the largest expanse of open moorland in southern Britain and, because of exceptional conditions of preservation, it is also one of the most complete examples of an upland relict landscape in the whole country. The great wealth and diversity of archaeological remains provide direct evidence for human exploitation of the Moor from the early prehistoric period onwards. The well-preserved and often visible relationship between settlement sites, major land boundaries, trackways, ceremonial and funerary monuments as well as later industrial remains, gives significant insights into successive changes in the pattern of land use through time. Round cairns are prehistoric funerary monuments dating to the Bronze Age (c.2000-700 BC). They were constructed as earthen or rubble mounds, the latter predominating in areas of upland Britain where such raw materials were locally available in abundance. Round cairns may cover single or multiple burials and are sometimes surrounded by an outer ditch. Often occupying prominent locations, they are a major visual element in the modern landscape. Their considerable variation in form and longevity as a monument type provide important information on the diversity of beliefs and social organisation amongst early prehistoric communities. They are particularly representative of their period and a substantial proportion of surviving examples are considered worthy of protection. Dartmoor provides one of the best preserved and most dense concentrations of round cairns in south- western Britain. Despite some remodelling of the profile and the erection of a later cairn on the summit, the round cairn called Eastern White Barrow survives comparatively well, occupies a prominent location and is one of the largest of Dartmoor’s surviving round cairns. The continued use through time of this significantly placed, easily recognisable and well known monument as a boundary marker indicates its importance territorially to its original builders which continued through time. It will contain archaeological and environmental evidence relating to its construction, longevity, social organisation, funerary and ritual practices and overall landscape context.

Source: Historic England

Sources

Books and journals
Butler, J, Dartmoor Atlas of Antiquities, Volume Four – The South-East , (1993), 159
Other
PastScape Monument No:-441441

Source: Historic England