Details

The monument includes a round barrow situated in a prominent position on the
east edge of Bilsdale West Moor overlooking Bilsdale.
The barrow has an earth and stone mound standing 1m high. It is round in
shape and is 10m in diameter. There is a prominent stone kerb visible around
the mound. In the centre of the mound is a modern stone cairn standing 1.1m
high. The mound was surrounded by a ditch up to 3m wide which has become
filled in over the years and is no longer visible as an earthwork. Immediately
on the west side of the mound is a track with deep side ditches cutting into
the area of the barrow ditch.
It is one of many similar barrows on this area of the Hambleton Hills. Many of
these lie in closely associated groups, particularly along the watersheds.
They provide evidence of territorial organisation marking divisions of land
divisions which still remain as some parish or township boundaries.
The surface of the track is excluded from the scheduling although the ground
beneath is included.

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 limited disturbance this barrow has survived well. Significant
information about the original form, burials placed within it and evidence of
earlier land use beneath the mound will be preserved.
Together with adjacent barrows it is thought to represent a territorial
marker. Similar groups of monuments are also known across the north and
central areas of the North York Moors, providing important insight into burial
practice. Such groupings of monuments offer important scope for the study of
the division of land for social, ritual and agricultural purposes in different
geographical areas during the prehistoric period.

Source: Historic England

Sources

Books and journals
Spratt, D A , 'Prehistoric and Roman Archaeology in North East Yorkshire' in Prehistoric and Roman Archaeology of North East Yorkshire, , Vol. BAR 104, (1993)

Source: Historic England