Details

The monument includes a saucer barrow, one of three barrows set on a false
crest towards the west end of a steep sided chalk spur. The barrow is
circular with an overall diameter of 17m and comprises a central mound l0m
in diameter and up to 0.3m high. The central area of this is hollowed to a
depth of 0.1m, possibly as a result of early exploration of the mound.
Surrounding the mound is a narrow ditch 0.5m wide and 0.1m deep from which
material was quarried during the construction of the monument. Surrounding
both mound and ditch is a continuous outer bank 3m wide and 0.2m high
constructed along the outer edge of the ditch.

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

Saucer barrows are funerary monuments of the Early Bronze Age, most examples
dating to between 1800 and l200 BC. They occur either in isolation or in
barrow cemeteries (closely-spaced groups of round barrows). They were
constructed as a circular area of level ground defined by a bank and internal
ditch and largely occupied by a single low, squat mound covering one or more
burials, usually in a pit. The burials, either inhumations or cremations, are
sometimes accompanied by pottery vessels, tools and personal ornaments. Saucer
barrows are one of the rarest recognised forms of round barrow, with about 60
known examples nationally, most of which are in Wessex. The presence of grave
goods within the barrows provides important evidence for chronological and
cultural links amongst prehistoric communities over a wide area of southern
England as well as providing an insight into their beliefs and social
organisation. As a rare and fragile form of round barrow, all identified
saucer barrows would normally be considered to be of national importance.

Despite evidence for partial excavation, the saucer barrow 910m west of
Cherhill Monument survives well as one of a group of three round barrows in
close proximity to each other at the western end of Cherhill Down. A good
example of an unusual class of monument its significance is further increased
by its close relationship to the other monuments. It has good potential for
the recovery of archaeological material and for environmental evidence
relating to the landscape in which the monument was constructed.

Source: Historic England