Details

The monument includes the remains of a long cairn of Neolithic date situated
on the west slope of Dour Hill commanding extensive views into the valley of
the Rede. The cairn, orientated north west to south east, is 50m long and 8.5m
wide and stands to a maximum height of 2m. A Bronze Age cist, a form of stone
coffin which was clearly a later insertion, is situated 6m from the southern
end of the cairn and measures 1.2m by 0.6m. This cist was excavated in the
1930s and a flint tool was recovered.

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

Long cairns were constructed as elongated rubble mounds and acted as funerary
monuments during the Early and Middle Neolithic periods (c.3400-2400 BC). They
represent the burial places of Britain's early farming communities and, as
such, are amongst the oldest field monuments surviving visibly in the present
landscape. Where investigated, long cairns appear to have been used for
communal burial, often with only parts of the human remains having been
selected for interment. Long cairns sometimes display evidence of internal
structural arrangements, including stone-lined compartments and tomb chambers
constructed from massive slabs. Some examples also show edge-set kerb stones
bounding parts of the cairn perimeter. Certain sites provide evidence for
several phases of funeral activity preceding construction of the cairn, and
consequently it is probable that long cairns acted as important ritual sites
for local communities over a considerable period of time. Some 500 examples of
long cairns and long barrows, their counterparts in central and eastern
England, are recorded nationally. As one of the few types of Neolithic
structure to survive as a visible monument and due to their comparative
rarity, their considerable age and their longevity as a monument type, all
positively identified long cairns are considered to be nationally important.

Dour Hill long cairn is one of few surviving long cairns in Northumberland. It
survives well and will add to our understanding of Neolithic settlement and
activity in the region.

Source: Historic England

Sources

Books and journals
Miket, R, Burgess, C (eds), Between and Beyond the Walls, (1984), 65-6
Hewat Craw, J, 'Hist Berwick Natur Club 27 pt 3' in , (1931), 329
Punshaw, G, Miller, J E, 'Proc Soc Antiq Ncle 4 ser 6' in Proc Soc Antiq Ncle 4 ser 6, (1934), 40-41

Source: Historic England