Details

The monument includes the remains of a substantial bowl barrow situated in a
prominent position immediately below the summit of Synald's Knoll. The barrow
is visible as a well defined stony mound with a diameter of 15.5m and stands
up to 1.2m high. The summit of the mound is flattened and has been disturbed
by exploration at some time in the past creating a central depression 0.3m
deep. Although no longer visible at ground level, a ditch, from which material
was quarried during the construction of the monument surrounds the mound. This
has become infilled over the years but survives as a buried feature some 2m
wide.

MAP EXTRACT
The site of the monument is shown on the attached map extract.
It includes a 2 metre boundary around the archaeological features,
considered to be essential for the monument's support and preservation.

Source: Historic England

Reasons for Scheduling

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.

Despite some limited disturbance, the barrow 80m north-west of the OS trig
pillar on Synalds Knoll, survives well and is a good example of this class of
round barrow. It will retain primary archaeological deposits and environmental
evidence from the old land surface sealed beneath the mound and in the ditch
fill. It is one of several such monuments on the Long Mynd which, when
considered together, contribute important information on the early settlement
and land use of this area of upland during the Bronze Age.

Source: Historic England