Details

This monument includes two round cairns situated on a plateau with White Law
hill to the south. Both cairns are built of stone and are covered by earth and
turf.
The southern cairn measures 9m in diameter and is 0.6m high and has a slight
depression in the middle. The northern cairn is situated less than 10m away
and is 7m in diameter and 0.5m high. This cairn has a depression 0.4m deep in
the centre indicating that an attempt has been made to rob it in the past.

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

Round cairn cemeteries date to the Bronze Age. They comprise groups of cairns
sited in close proximity to one another and take the form of stone mounds
constructed to cover single or multiple burials. Contemporary or later `flat'
graves may lie between individual cairns. Most cemeteries developed over a
considerable period of time and they can exhibit considerable diversity of
burial rite, plan and form. Occasionally they are associated with earlier long
cairns. They may also be associated with clearance cairns - heaps of stones
cleared from the adjacent ground surface to improve its quality for
agricultural activities; these were also being constructed during the Bronze
Age, although some examples are of later date. It may be impossible without
excavation to distinguish between some burial and clearance cairns. Round
cairn cemeteries occur throughout most of upland Britain; their distribution
pattern complements that of contemporary lowland earthen round barrows. Often
occupying prominent locations they are a major historic element in the modern
landscape. Their diversity and longevity as a monument type provide important
information on the variety of beliefs and social organisation amongst early
prehistoric communities. They are particularly representative of their period
and a substantial proportion of surviving or partly-surviving examples are
considered worthy of preservation.

These round cairns are well preserved and are visible from a large area. They
are members of a series of cairns stretching from here to Madam Law and
Trowupburn and north to Coldsmouth Hill. As such, these cairns will contribute
significantly towards a fuller understanding of the funerary landscape of the
Bronze Age and will contribute to the study of beliefs and social organisation
amongst early prehistoric commuities.
Although there is evidence that the cairns may have been robbed in the past,
other excavations have shown that many cairns have a number of burials or
cremations in addition to the main central one. The archaeological potential
therefore remains high.

Source: Historic England