Details

The monument includes a henge monument which is situated on the flood plain of
the River Brain, 1km south west of Cressing parish church and 20m east of the
Essex Way. Although no longer visible as an earthwork at ground level the
monument is defined by a single infilled circular ditch which can be clearly
seen as a cropmark and on aerial photographs. The henge itself is 42m in
diameter and the ditch is approximately 4m in width. This henge is classed as
type I because it has only one entrance towards the north west.

MAP EXTRACT
The site of the monument is shown on the attached map extract.
It includes a 5 metre boundary around the archaeological features,
considered to be essential for the monument's support and preservation.

Source: Historic England

Reasons for Scheduling

Henges are ritual or ceremonial centres which date to the Late Neolithic
period (2800-2000 BC). They were constructed as roughly circular or oval-
shaped enclosures comprising a flat area over 20m in diameter enclosed by a
ditch and external bank. One, two or four entrances provided access to the
interior of the monument, which may have contained a variety of features
including timber or stone circles, post or stone alignments, pits, burials or
central mounds. Finds from the ditches and interiors of henges provide
important evidence for the chronological development of the sites, the types
of activity that occurred within them and the nature of the environment in
which they were constructed. Henges occur throughout England with the
exception of south-eastern counties and the Welsh Marches. They are generally
situated on low ground, often close to springs and water-courses. Henges are
rare nationally with about 80 known examples. As one of the few types of
identified Neolithic structures and in view of their comparative rarity, all
henges are considered to be of national importance.

Although only visible as a cropmark, the henge monument ENE of Newbarns Farm
survives well as a series of buried features. The fills of the ditches will
retain archaeological material relating to the construction of the monument
and to the environment in which it was built, whilst the buried remains of
internal structures will provide information as to its original function and
to its use over a long period of time.

Source: Historic England