Ancient Monuments

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Round cairn, 720m WNW of Ray Cottages

A Scheduled Monument in Kirkwhelpington, Northumberland

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Coordinates

Latitude: 55.1683 / 55°10'5"N

Longitude: -2.0602 / 2°3'36"W

OS Eastings: 396264.35904

OS Northings: 586001.884262

OS Grid: NY962860

Mapcode National: GBR G81P.S3

Mapcode Global: WHB1F.BC67

Entry Name: Round cairn, 720m WNW of Ray Cottages

Scheduled Date: 1 December 1993

Source: Historic England

Source ID: 1011108

English Heritage Legacy ID: 21004

County: Northumberland

Civil Parish: Kirkwhelpington

Traditional County: Northumberland

Lieutenancy Area (Ceremonial County): Northumberland

Church of England Parish: Kirkwhelpington with Kirkharle and Kirkheaton

Church of England Diocese: Newcastle

Details

The monument includes a round cairn of Bronze Age date situated on a slight
natural knoll on the edge of a forestry plantation. The cairn, composed of
earth and stone, is 9m in diameter and 1.2m high. At the centre of the cairn
there is a small, shallow hole, the result either of unrecorded limited
exploration of the centre of the cairn or the removal of a tree. Several large
stones have been piled into and on top of this hollow. The area includes a
margin of 2m on all sides except on the west where the constraint line is
drawn along the foot of the plantation fence line.

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 cairns are prehistoric funerary monuments dating to the Bronze Age
(c.2000-700 BC). They were constructed as stone mounds covering single or
multiple burials. These burials may be placed within the mound in stone-lined
compartments called cists. In some cases the cairn was surrounded by a ditch.
Often occupying prominent locations, cairns are a major visual element in the
modern landscape. They are a relatively common feature of the uplands and are
the stone equivalent of the earthen round barrows of the lowlands. Their
considerable variation in form and longevity as a monument type provide
important information on the diversity of beliefs and social organisation
amongst early prehistoric communities. They are particularly representative of
their period and a substantial proportion of surviving examples are considered
worthy of protection.

The round cairn west of Ray Cottages survives well and retains substantial and
significant archaeological deposits.

Source: Historic England

Sources

Other
NY 98 NE 05,

Source: Historic England

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