Details

The monument includes three earthen bowl barrows located on a narrow plateau
east of Ravens' Gill between the bottom of a hillslope and the steep declivity
to the gill. The southern barrow is situated at the western edge of the
plateau and measures up to 0.4m high with maximum dimensions of 8.5m by 7m.
The central barrow lies 10m to the north-east of this barrow and has been
partially mutilated by the removal of its centre. It measures up to 0.4m high
with maximum dimensions of 9.5m by 8.5m. The northern barrow lies 10m to the
north of the central barrow and measures up to 1.2m high with maximum
dimensions of 10m by 8m.

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 partial mutilation of the central mound and some minor stock erosion
to the other mounds, the three bowl barrows east of Ravens' Gill survive
reasonably well. The monument is a rare example in Cumbria of three earthen
barrows in close proximity. None of the mounds are known to have been
excavated and the southern and northern barrows in particular will retain
undisturbed archaeological deposits within the mound and upon the old
landsurface.

Source: Historic England

Sources

Other
Darvill, T, MPP Single Monument Class Descriptions - Bowl Barrows (1988), (1988)
Darvill,T., MPP Single Monument Class Description - Bowl Barrows, (1988)

Source: Historic England