Details

The monument includes a bowl barrow situated on a gentle north facing slope
near the summit of a ridge. The barrow has a mound which now lies mostly
within a mature field boundary hedge. To the west the mound has been reduced
in height by ploughing and now survives as a very low rise in the ground
surface. The mound was previously recorded as being 40ft (c.12m) in diameter
and now has a maximum height of c.0.6m. There is no clear indication of a
quarry ditch surrounding the mound but it will survive as a buried feature
c.2m wide. The barrow was probably excavated by J Mansel-Pleydell in 1881 when
three cremations in cists were found, possibly in primary positions. The
barrow apparently lies within a field system which has been levelled by
ploughing and which is not included in the scheduling.
All fence posts are excluded from the scheduling although the ground beneath
these features is included.

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.

The bowl barrow 480m south east of West End Barn, although reduced in height
by ploughing and disturbed by previous excavations, will contain
archaeological remains, providing information about Bronze Age burial
practices, economy and environment.

Source: Historic England

Sources

Books and journals
Historical Monuments in the County of Dorset: Volume I, (1970), 181
Mansel Pleydell, J C, 'Proceedings of the Dorset Natural History and Arch. Society' in The Barrows Of Dorset, , Vol. 5, (1883), 30-31

Source: Historic England