Details

The two bowl barrows at Rockhurst are located 10m apart above an outcrop on
the south-eastern uplands of the limestone plateau of Derbyshire. The
monument includes both barrows within a single constraint area. The larger
barrow, situated adjacent to a quarry pit to the south-east, consists of a
steep-sided, sub-circular mound measuring 13.5m by 11.5m and surviving to a
height of c.1.5m. The top of the mound has been disturbed and it is possible
that this is the barrow on Brassington Moor partially excavated by Thomas
Bateman in 1849. The smaller north-western barrow has a diameter of 9.5m and
is c.0.2m high, having apparently been excavated almost to the old land
surface though there is no record of such an excavation. Clearly visible in
the remains of the smaller barrow are a stone cist and three rock-cut pits in
which burials will have been placed. These features and the overall
appearance of both barrows indicate that they are of Bronze Age date.
Excluded from the scheduling is the field wall which crosses the southern edge
of the south-eastern barrow but the ground underneath 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.

The larger of the two bowl barrows at Rockhurst is a reasonably well preserved
example whose archaeological remains are largely intact. The smaller barrow,
although denuded, still retains some of its deposits in addition to
significant architectural features, and is important owing to its close
proximity to the other barrow.

Source: Historic England

Sources

Books and journals
Barnatt, J, The Peak District Barrow Survey (1989), (1989)
Barnatt, J, The Peak District Barrow Survey (1989), (1989)
Bateman, T, Ten Years Diggings in Celtic and Saxon Grave-Hills, (1861), 55-56
Marsden, B M, The Burial Mounds of Derbyshire , (1977), 8

Source: Historic England