Details

The monument includes two adjacent bowl barrows, orientated east-west, and set
on a local promontary in an area of undulating chalk downland. The eastern
barrow mound is 1m high and has a maximum diameter of 13m. The western mound
is 20m in diameter and stands to a height of 1.5m. Although no longer visible
at ground level, both barrows are surrounded by ditches from which mound
material was quarried. These have become infilled over the years but each
survives as a buried feature some 3m in width.

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

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.

The pair of bowl barrows south of Tanhill Penning survive well and have
considerable archaeological potential. The presence of numerous other barrows
and additional evidence for contemporary settlement in the area of Bishop's
Cannings Down provide a clear indication of the intensity with which the area
was settled during the Bronze Age, further enhancing the significance of the
monument.

Source: Historic England