Details

The monument includes three bowl barrows aligned east-west and set on a
prominent ridge-top in an area of undulating chalk downland. The western
barrow mound is 18m in diameter and 1m high; the central mound is 15m across
and 0.7m high while the eastern mound has been levelled and is no longer
visible as an earthwork. Each of the barrow mounds is surrounded by a ditch
from which material was quarried during construction of the monument. Although
no longer visible at ground level these survive as buried features c.2m wide

MAP EXTRACT
The site of the monument is shown on the attached map extract.

Source: Historic England

Reasons for Scheduling

Round barrow cemeteries date to the Bronze Age (2000-700bc). They comprise
closely-spaced groups of up to 30 round barrows - rubble or earthen mounds
covering single or multiple burials. Most cemeteries developed over a
considerable period of time, often many centuries, and in some cases acted as
a focus for burials as late as the early medieval period. They exhibit
considerable diversity of burial rite, plan and form, frequently including
several different types of round barrow, occasionally associated with earlier
long barrows. Where large scale investigation has been undertaken around
them, contemporary or later "flat" burials between the barrow mounds have
often been revealed. Round barrow cemeteries occur across most of lowland
Britain, with a marked concentration in Wessex. In some cases, they are
clustered around other important contemporary monuments such as henges. Often
occupying prominent locations, they are a major historic element in the modern
landscape, whilst their diversity and their 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 protection.

The group of barrows west of Barbury castle survives comparatively well and
its importance is enhanced by the presence of a saucer barrow also within the
cemetery. Saucer barrows are rare nationally with only about 60 examples
known.

Source: Historic England