Details

The monument includes three bowl barrows which are members of a group of
barrows situated on the northern edge of East Heslerton Wold.
Although altered by agricultural activity, the largest barrow is still visible
as an earthy mound 1m high and 35m in diameter. The ditch which originally
surrounded the barrow has been covered by the gradual spreading of the mound
material but is visible on aerial photographs. A second barrow lies to the
south-west of the larger one; this is identifiable as a chalky mound 0.3m high
and 20m in diameter. The ditch surrounding this barrow is also covered by the
edge of the mound but is visible on aerial photographs and has a maximum
diameter of 20m. A third barrow, which touches the southern side of the
largest barrow, no longer survives as an earthwork but the eastern arc of its
buried ditch is visible from aerial photographs; this has an estimated total
diameter of 20m.

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.

Although the barrows have been partially altered by agricultural activity, two
are still clearly visible as earthworks. The infilled quarry ditches which
surround the barrows have also been observed on aerial photographs. While the
contents of neighbouring barrows were recorded during a campaign of fieldwork
in the 19th century, these barrows have never been excavated and the
encircling ditches and burials in deep grave pits will survive intact. Because
the three barrows lie in close proximity, good evidence for their relative
dates of construction will survive.
The three barrows are members of an associated group which has further
associations with broadly contemporary boundary earthworks in the vicinity of
East Heslerton Wold. Similar groups of monuments are also known from other
parts of the Wolds and from the southern edge of the North York Moors. Such
associations between monuments offer important scope for the study of the
division of land for social, ritual and agricultural purposes in different
geographical areas during the prehistoric period.

Source: Historic England

Sources

Other
Stoertz, K, (1992)

Source: Historic England