Details

The monument includes a ditched bowl barrow, part of a dispersed group of
barrows situated to the south of Woolbury hillfort on the southern slopes of
Stockbridge Down. The monument lies approximately 100m north of the A 272
Stockbridge to Winchester road and NNW of The Plantation.
The barrow has a mound 12m in diameter and 0.8m high on the summit of which is
a central hollow. The hollow, which is 4m in diameter and 0.2m deep is likely
to be the result of an unrecorded antiquarian excavation. The mound is
entirely surrounded by a visible ditch from which material to construct the
mound was quarried. The ditch, which is 3m wide and an average of 0.3m deep,
is most pronounced on the uphill (north) side of the mound.

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.

Stockbridge Down is one of few surviving areas of undisturbed chalk downland
in Wessex and contains a range of generally well preserved archaeological
features. A survey of the area has confirmed the survival of
prehistoric round barrows, linear earthworks and field systems all to the
south of the Iron Age hillfort of Woolbury.
The bowl barrow 100m NNW of The Plantation on Stockbridge Down is a well
preserved example of its class. The barrow exhibits a largely original profile
with a pronounced ditch surrounding the mound. The visual appearance of the
mound suggests some small scale excavation in the past but, despite this,
archaeological remains will survive providing information about Bronze Age
burial practices, economy and environment.
The monument is situated within an area of unrestricted public access.

Source: Historic England

Sources

Books and journals
Papworth, M, Archaeological Survey, Stockbridge Down and Marsh, Hampshire, (1992), 18-19
Grinsell, L V, 'Proceedings of the Hampshire Field Club' in Hampshire Barrows, , Vol. Vol 14, (1938), 353

Source: Historic England